A veteran Toronto police tactical officer was shot and killed early Thursday during a pre-dawn raid at a North York apartment building, in an exchange of gunfire that has left one suspect in hospital and a second being sought by police.
Const. Marc Pinizzotto, 43, an 18-year member of the Toronto Police Service who spent the last five years on its Emergency Task Force, was struck during the execution of a search warrant at a building on Martha Eaton Way, near Black Creek and Trethewey drives, at about 5:40 a.m. He was rushed to Sunnybrook Hospital, where he died of his injuries.
'There is a very heavy sorrow in our community right now,' Police Chief Myron Demkiw said at a news conference announcing the officer's death. 'These moments remind us of just the dangers that our members face each and every day.'
The raid was part of a series of search warrants connected to multiple shootings in the city, including a March 2026 attack on the US Consulate, police said. One suspect was taken into custody and was receiving emergency care in hospital. A second suspect, identified by police as 19-year-old Zara Jabbi, remained outstanding Thursday, and investigators urged the suspect to surrender.
Ontario's Special Investigations Unit, which examines all deaths and serious injuries involving police, has invoked its mandate and is investigating the circumstances of the shooting.
Pinizzotto was married and the father of 14-year-old twins, a boy and a girl. Before joining the service he played professional hockey in Europe, colleagues said. Tributes from officers, city officials and policing organizations across Canada accumulated through the morning, and flags at Toronto police facilities were lowered to half-mast.
The death of an Emergency Task Force member — the service's most highly trained tactical unit — in a planned operation is expected to prompt an internal review of the raid alongside the SIU's independent investigation.
Police closed portions of Martha Eaton Way through the day as forensic investigators worked at the scene, and asked anyone with information or video from the area to come forward.