Empire State Building lights to go dark for Toronto victims

Additional police have been deployed across Toronto in the wake of the incident, while officials say victims are still being identified.

Also killed in the attack was Dorothy Sewell, an 80-year-old grandmother who was an avid sports fan, said her grandson, Elwood Delaney. Calling it a “senseless attack and a horrific tragedy”, Trudeau called for a show of support for those affected as well as a city in mourning.

“We should all feel safe walking in our cities and communities”.

– The classmate said Minassian was very self-deprecating. People were getting hit, one after another. “Everyone was out enjoying the sunshine, and enjoying life”. “I will punish all of you for it”.

A man police identified as Minassian’s father was present when Minassian appeared in court Tuesday morning.

Authorities said Minassian left a trail of destruction almost a mile long, north of midtown Toronto. His next court appearance is now slated for May 10.

Just minutes later, Toronto police corrected the chief, saying in a tweet that the name of the man in custody was in fact Alek Minassian. He had not progressed to weapons training by the time he was released. Kudos to the Officer and the recent revamp in the Toronto Police Department’s training methods to reduce fatal encounters.

McCormack said the officer was one of many first responders who ran towards the danger as the van mounted the sidewalk between Finch Avenue and Sheppard Avenue.

The suspect, Alek Minassian, allegedly drove a white Ryder for 11/2 miles while ramming into his victims.

Incels also often give praise to Elliot Rodger, a murderer who killed six people in a rampage through Isla Vista, California in 2014.

Investigators noted that Rodger was motivated to carry out his attack by a personal grievance related to his immersion in the extremist ideological subculture of men’s rights activists propagated in several online forums such as 4Chan, which believe that women do not actually want gender equality and have been brainwashed by feminist propaganda, he said. “It’s something that we’ll take into account”. Graham Gibson told a news conference that those killed and injured were “predominantly” women, though he declined to discuss a possible motive.

“I don’t know what the healing process would be for this”.

But identities began to emerge from other quarters.

Anne Marie D’Amico who worked at an investment management firm in the Canadian city. She worked at Invesco Canada, a USA -based investment firm with offices close to the crime scene.

“Our hearts are with all of those affected”, he said.

“She was, along with nine others, an innocent victim of this tragic act of violence”, college president David Agnew said in a statement. He remembered her as “super-positive, always smiling, a amusing person, always up for a challenge, and really wanted to help people out”.

Minassian was a student at Seneca College in Toronto, enrolled between 2011 and 2018.

Two South Koreans were among the dead, Yonhap News Agency reported, citing government officials.

Throughout the day, tributes poured in from politicians at home and farther afield.

“At this time, we have no reason to suspect that there is any national security element to this attack, but obviously the investigations continue”, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in Ottawa.

Volunteering was a family activity for the D’Amico clan, and over more than 15 years of involvement with the tournament, they became part of a tight-knit group of returning volunteers, Ziv said.

Toronto Mayor John Tory said the city will recover.

Asked if he had any message to Toronto, he quietly said: “Sorry”. Dubbed #TorontoStrong, it builds upon a previous crowd-funding effort that had already raised almost $100,000.

“We’re still looking for more witnesses”, said Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders, encouraging anyone with information to call the investigation hotline 416-808-8750.

However, the university professor, who is now teaching in Australia, says if the constable had waited for backup, the situation might have escalated and had a different outcome.

“I felt a mix of rage and a lot of sympathy for the victims”. “We love each other here”.