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A veteran Toronto police officer died Thursday after an early-morning raid linked to a shooting at the U.S. Consulate earlier this year.
Const. Marc Pinizzotto, a member of the Emergency Task Force, was shot as officers executed a search warrant at 15 Martha Eaton Way, an apartment building near Trethewey and Black Creek drives, at about 5:40 a.m.
The 43-year-old man was pronounced dead at Sunnybrook Hospital. A suspect is in custody and was also taken to hospital.
A 19-year-old man inside a unit on the apartment’s fourth floor shot at Pinizzotto when officers entered, the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) – Ontario’s police watchdog – said. A second officer then shot at the man, hitting him multiple times.
Later on Thursday, Toronto police said Nicholas Bennett, 19, would be charged with first-degree murder over the death of Pinizzotto.
Chief Myron Demkiw said Pinizzotto was a member of the task force for five years and had been with the service for 18 years.
“No words can capture the impact on Marc’s family, who expected him to come home today. We as a service will support them and each other,” he told reporters at Sunnybrook.
“It goes without saying that this is devastating news for Marc’s colleagues at the ETF Unit, many of whom have been here throughout the morning. We are doing everything we can to support them at this time.”
Demkiw said the search warrant police were executing was among several Thursday that were tied to a probe investigating multiple shootings, including the one at the consulate on University Avenue in March.
Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, an Iraqi national, was arrested and charged in the United States last month with terrorism offences in connection with the shooting.
Demkiw said one suspect is outstanding: 19-year-old Zara Jabbi. He urged him to turn himself in.
Jabbi is wanted in relation to the March shooting at the consulate rather than the events of Thursday.
Global News’ crime expert and former Toronto police officer Hank Idsinga said special permission must be sought to execute warrants in the manner police did.
“The Emergency Task Force is a very highly trained, heavily armed tactical unit, much like you’d see on television with SWAT teams, and they are used for high-risk situations, especially the execution of search warrants,” he explained.
“Search warrants, normally in Canada, have to be executed during daytime hours, unless you can justify why they’re not. These search warrants obviously were being executed outside of daytime hours, so they’re very high-risk warrants.”
The SIU, which is probing the shooting, said four other people were in the unit at the time but that it’s too early in the investigation to know why.
Pete Hoekstra, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, told the crowd at the 2026 US-Canada Summit in Toronto the shooting may be linked to the United States.
“Our thoughts, our prayers are with the family of the police person who was killed. They are with the police community, law enforcement community in Toronto and Ontario, and I think it exemplifies and is an example of the close co-operation we have in law enforcement between the two countries, how we work together and the risk involved in those types of activities,” he said.
“Our thoughts and prayers and sympathies to the people who may be, we are all affected by this, so let’s remember them today as we move forward.”
Tributes for Pinizzotto poured in as news of his death broke.
“There are no words that can ease the pain of the family, the loved ones and the colleagues across the service. They are very much in our thoughts as they face this profound loss,” Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said.
“Their grief is shared across this entire city.”
Clayton Campbell, president of the Toronto Police Association, said Pinizzotto was a valued member of the force.
“This officer left his family to make the city a safer place. He deserved to go home to them,” he said.
“Our members put their lives on the line every day, and it is a tragedy that Mark did not return home safely to his family.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Prime Minister Mark Carney also offered their condolences in separate posts on social media.
On behalf of the people of Ontario, I extend my sincere condolences to the family, loved ones and fellow service members of Toronto Police Service Constable Marc Pinizzotto, who was killed in the line of duty today.
Today is a sobering reminder of the sacrifices and risks faced…
— Doug Ford (@fordnation) June 11, 2026
This morning, a Toronto Police Officer, Constable Marc Pinizzotto, was killed in the line of duty. This tragedy follows the death of OPP Constable Tarun Bali on Tuesday. Canada mourns the loss of these brave officers who dedicated their lives to protecting their communities.
My…
— Mark Carney (@MarkJCarney) June 11, 2026
Some residents of 15 Martha Eaton Way said they were worried by a trend of violence in the area.
“It’s not the first time: last year, a little boy got shot.”
That little boy was eight-year-old JahVai Roy, who was killed when stray bullets entered his bedroom on Aug. 16, 2025. He was lying in bed with his mother when shots rang out outside his home around 12:30 a.m.
Three teenagers were arrested and charged with first-degree murder in that case.
Idsinga said the neighbourhood had long been well-known to police.
“It’s a tough area, it’s an area that’s definitely been fraught with some issues,” he said. “I’ve investigated homicides in that area. I’ve arrested individuals involved in homicides in that area and even that specific building.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact police.
— with files from Tracy Tong and Victoria Femia
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