Driver Plows Van into Pedestrians in Toronto, 10 Dead

VOA News
Last Updated: 24 April 2018 (5:37AM)

Canadian police are looking for a motive behind the attack on pedestrians in Toronto Monday in which a man drove a van onto a crowded sidewalk and killed 10 people and injured 15 others.

Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders identified the suspect as 25-year old Alek Minassian and said he was from a Toronto suburb. He told reporters the incident "definitely looked deliberate."

Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said he consulted with senior security officials and that based on all available information "there would appear to be no national security connection to this particular incident."

The driver was going down a busy street around 1:30 p.m. local time in Canada's biggest city when the van jumped onto the sidewalk. Witnesses describing the scene said the van struck person after person with the driver seeming to make no effort to stop.

Minassian was taken into custody a short time later "without incident," according to police.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the incident a "tragic and senseless attack" and sent his condolences to the victims and their loved ones.

"We should all feel safe walking in our cities and communities," he said in a statement.

A White House statement said the United States "stands with the Canadian people" and pledges to give Canada any support it needs.