New details emerge about shootout between police and gunman behind GTA rampage

The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) released Tuesday its findings into the September shooting rampage that left a Toronto police officer and two other people dead, clearing the four officers who fatally shot the gunman of any wrongdoing.

In the report, SIU Director Joseph Martino said there was no basis in laying charges against the officers from Hamilton police and Halton police who were involved in a shootout with a suspect, later identified as 40-year-old Sean Petrie, at a Hamilton cemetery on the afternoon of Sept. 12.

He added "there were no reasonable grounds to believe that any of the officers comported themselves other than within the limits of the criminal law when they fired at the man."

The fatal shootout at the cemetery brought a murder spree that began at a Tim Hortons in Mississauga to an end. Const. Andrew Hong, auto repair shop owner Shakeel Ashraf, and his employee Satwinder Singh, all died in the rampage.

In his report, using witness interviews and evidence collected from the scene and police records, Martino provided a detailed account of what unfolded that day.

The SIU said Petrie, referred to as the Complainant in the report, had been waiting in his vehicle outside the Tim Hortons at 3110 Argentia Road since 11:58 a.m. The agency noted he "staked-out" the restaurant, waiting for police to arrive.

He was armed with a Norinco .45 calibre pistol and a "generous" supply of ammunition, according to the SIU.

Two hours later, Petrie saw a Toronto police officer in an unmarked police vehicle arrive. The officer, who would later be identified as Hong, was on a lunch break from a training exercise.

Petrie, the SIU said, entered the Tim Hortons and "paced back and forth for a period of time, looking at the parking lot."

At 2:11 p.m., Hong entered the restaurant and made eye contact with Petrie, and the SIU said they nodded at each other. As Hong walked towards the counter, Petrie pushed the handicap button to open the entrance door, took out his handgun, and shot Hong in the head.

Petrie tried to take Hong's firearm from its holster but failed, the SIU said. He then shot Hong again in the head before fleeing the Tim Hortons.

The SIU said Petrie walked to a nearby Walmart, passed his vehicle, and approached a Jeep Cherokee. He pulled the driver out and shot him in the stomach.

Petrie drove away from the area in the Cherokee.

Shortly before 2:30 p.m., Petrie arrived at an auto repair shop in Milton, where he used to work. He "believed himself aggrieved by his former employer," the SIU said.

Petrie confronted the owner, Ashraf, in the lunchroom, fatally shooting him multiple times. The SIU said two employees saw the shooting and ran away. Petrie fired shots at them, but he missed.

He then moved to the front desk, where he confronted two more employees. One of them who recognized Petrie, was shot in the leg. The other, Singh, was shot in the head. He died in hospital days later.

When Petrie tried to fire his pistol again, "a clicking noise was heard," the SIU said, indicating that he had run out of bullets.

That prompted Petrie to flee the repair shop in the stolen Cherokee.

Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) officers arrived at 2:55 p.m. and learned that Petrie was responsible for the shootings. They also got his cellphone number, which would later help them locate him.

"Exigent circumstances allowed HRPS officers to ping the cellular telephone, and information came in that the Complainant's cellular telephone was in the Hamilton area. The location was later learned to be within a radius that included the Hamilton Cemetery," the SIU said.

Hamilton Police Service (HPS) officers began their search in their jurisdiction, including two officers travelling in an unmarked Chevrolet Malibu. When they learned about the suspect possibly being in the cemetery, the two officers headed there and came to a stop 45 metres away from the suspect's vehicle, but they did not know that at the time.

Petrie had been standing outside the Cherokee when one of the officers walked towards him. According to the SIU, the officer thought at the time that the suspect was white, as it was the description that was initially sent out. As Petrie did not fit the description, "it was the officer's intention to approach the vehicle and check its licence plate against the one that had been broadcast of the Cherokee."

The SIU said Petrie saw the officer approaching and closed their distance before firing a pistol in her direction.

As soon as a shot was fired, the officer yelled "gun," running for cover behind a tree and drawing her weapon to return fire.

The other officer heard the shout and saw Petrie shooting in their direction. The SIU said he also took cover behind a tree and fired back.

As the shootout was happening, the tactical unit from the HRPS, who had arrived at the cemetery a short time earlier, stopped their vehicle when they heard the gunshots.

"Armed with C-8 rifles, the officers advanced shoulder to shoulder in a northwesterly direction up a small hill towards a tree and began to fire at (Petrie)," the SIU said.

That resulted in Petrie turning his attention to the two tactical officers.

"At one point, having emptied his firearm of ammunition, it appears he ditched the empty magazine with the intention of inserting a fully loaded one. He was incapacitated by gunshots before he could do so," the SIU said.

He was knocked to the ground, having sustained multiple gunshot wounds to the torso. He was handcuffed, and life-saving measures were performed. Paramedics later arrived and took over, but they declared him dead at 4:53 p.m.

The SIU said Petrie fired seven times, emptying his magazine. Meanwhile, the two HPS officers fired their Glock semi-automatic pistols that shot .40 calibre rounds for a total of 15 and three times, respectively.

The two HRPS officers were armed with rifles and fired 16 and 12 rounds of 5.56 Hornady NATO, respectively.

The SIU said Petrie was found wearing a ballistic vest, which was capable of stopping .40 calibre bullets, but not the rifle ammunition. The agency also recovered two extended magazines fully loaded with ten .45 calibre cartridges from his front pant pockets.

"It is apparent, from the mouths of the subject officials and the circumstances surrounding the shooting, that each of the subject officials fired their weapon to protect themselves from a reasonably apprehended attack by the Complainant. The Complainant had produced a gun and fired at the officers," Martino wrote in his analysis. "He had earlier used a gun to kill and maim several other persons simply going about their day. There could be no mistaking the Complainant's intentions."

The SIU said three of the officers involved in the shootout were interviewed, while the fourth declined to speak to the agency as is his legal right.

Martino said the officers used reasonable force in the situation as Petrie was "primed for gunfight" with police, which was evident by the vest he was wearing and the number of ammunition he had.

"He had with him a fully loaded pistol, with two additional fully-loaded magazines, as well as a plastic bag with extra .45 calibre cartridges," Martino said.

The director noted the SIU could not determine which officer fired the fatal shot.

"At the end of the investigation, it was not altogether clear which bullets from which police firearms wounded the man," Martino said.

"While the likelihood is high that most, if not all, of the Complainant's wounds were the result of ammunition discharged by the HRPS tactical officers in some combination given the ballistic vest the Complainant was wearing, the possibility that one or more of the rounds fired by the HPS officers contributed to the Complainant's injuries cannot be excluded."

As a result, Martino said the SIU decided to close the case.