Vaughan mass shooting: Still no official word on whether gun used was legally owned

Globalnews.ca
Jan. 3, 2023

There is still no official word on whether the gun used in the mass shooting that left five victims dead at a condo building in Vaughan earlier this month was legally owned.

Ontario’s police watchdog, which is investigating the police shooting death of the gunman Frencesco Villi, previously said he used a semi-automatic handgun.

York Regional Police haven’t said whether or not the gun was legally in Villi’s possession and neither has the Special Investigations Unit (SIU).

“While the SIU’s investigation is ongoing, we won’t be releasing details such as that,” an SIU spokesperson said Wednesday.

The federal government implemented a national freeze on buying, selling and transferring handguns earlier this year.

However, existing licenced owners could still keep their firearm.

Villi went on a shooting rampage at a condo building in Vaughan on Dec. 18, located on Jane Street just north of Rutherford Road.

He shot six victims, five of whom died, before he was shot dead by an officer.