Toronto police are investigating a “national security incident” after shots were fired at the U.S. consulate early Tuesday morning, damaging the building but causing no injuries.
Around 5:29 a.m., about an hour after investigators believed the shooting occurred, a witness called troopers to report gunshots at the consulate, police said.
Toronto Police Deputy Chief Frank Barrett said authorities “found evidence of a discharge of a firearm, shell casings and damage to a building.”
Barrett said witness evidence showed two male suspects fired what appeared to be handguns in front of the consulate and fled in a white Honda CRV. Police later released images of the car taken from security camera footage.
“There were people inside the building,” Barrett said. “However, this building is highly secure and heavily fortified, and no one was injured.”
The deputy chief later said the building was so heavily encased in metal and glass that personnel inside may not have noticed the gunshots at all.
“This is in the very early stages of the investigation,” Barrett said. “The investigation is very active and we are aggressively allocating investigative resources to uncover what happened and bring the perpetrators to justice.”
He added that Toronto’s Joint Firearms and Gang Task Force is leading the investigation with assistance from other local and federal agencies.
As the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran continues to escalate, U.S. embassies and consulates are beefing up security and recalling staff around the world.
The shooting in Toronto came days after a bombing at the U.S. embassy in Oslo, Norway. Recently, U.S. diplomatic missions abroad have been the target of Iranian retaliatory attacks in the Persian Gulf.
When asked if the incident was related to the ongoing war in the Middle East, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Superintendent Chris Leather said it was too early to say, but the connection between the incident and current events is being investigated.
“At this time, the INSET team is active because this is a national security incident. We are working with Toronto police and others to understand the motives of those involved,” Leather said, referring to Canada’s Integrated National Security Enforcement Team, which is responsible for counter-terrorism.
Leather added that Ontario has seen multiple shootings at synagogues in recent days, which “is also a very important factor in how we approach this issue.”
At a separate news conference, Ontario Premier Doug Ford speculated that the synagogue shooting and the consulate incident may have been the work of a “sleeper cell.”
“This is just me talking,” Ford said. “I think sleeper cells, as we know, are all over the world. They’re in the United States, they’re in Canada.”
Leather told reporters that the RCMP “has no information to provide at this time regarding sleeper cells, whether or not they exist in Canada.”
Leather said whether the shooting will be classified as terrorism depends on the outcome of the investigation.
“At the end of the day, the U.S. consulate was hit by gunfire, so this is definitely a national security incident,” Leather said.
U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra called the shooting “extremely concerning” in a post on X.
“I am so grateful that no one was hurt,” Hoekstra wrote. “My team has been in close contact with Toronto Police and Canadian authorities and I have full confidence in their investigation. Our work will continue and we will not be intimidated.”
“At this time, the State Department is aware of this incident and is closely monitoring the situation in coordination with local law enforcement,” a State Department spokesperson said early Tuesday.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called the shooting a “reprehensible act of violence and attempted intimidation” in a statement on social media. “The RCMP and federal agencies are assisting Toronto Police with their investigation and will commit all necessary resources to ensure the perpetrators of these acts of violence are identified and brought to justice.”
“You’re going to see a change in the security posture here in Toronto and in Ottawa as well” at other consulates, including the U.S. embassy and the Israeli embassy, Leather said at a news conference in Toronto.
Asked why Israeli and U.S. consulates in particular are receiving more security, Reza said: “Given the events that have occurred here in Toronto and elsewhere, it’s clear that these consulates deserve the utmost vigilance and security at this time, in the hope that we can lower the temperature in the coming days and weeks.”
He added that Canadian authorities are in contact with U.S. officials, including the FBI, regarding the matter.
CNN’s Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.
