Viewer video obtained by CTV News Toronto shows a dramatic police take-down in Toronto’s Little Portugal neighbourhood over the weekend.
The incident happened near Dundas Street West and Dufferin Street around 3:45 p.m. last Friday.
In the footage, four officers with guns drawn can be seen yelling at the occupants of a smoking 2021 Chevy Silverado, moments after it was boxed it by several marked cruisers on Dundas and two suspects were forcefully removed.
Police say the driver intentionally rammed into aand damaged two police cars as he tried to flee.
Investigators told CTV News Toronto the vehicle’s two occupants allegedly refused exit, which lead them to smash a window before dragging the suspects out of the pickup.
Toronto police say a special constable had spotted and flagged a stolen truck that was seen a short time earlier near Dundas and Dovercourt Road.
“We heard a lot of screeching, some crashing, eventually saw the police boxing him in, but at that point we went to the back of the store in case his truck got loose and came through the front of our store,” a local flower shop owner told CTV News Toronto.
“It was really bad. … It was like we were watching a really bad movie,” described another local business owner.
A man named Stephen who saw what happened called the situation a “ruckus.”
“I just saw a truck steaming and trying to get past the barricades the cops set up,” he said.
“Weapons were drawn. [The officers] were trying to get the people in the vehicle to get out - they wouldn’t get out and had cops jumping over the vehicle.”
Christopher Leonardo, 42, of no fixed address, was subsequently arrested and charged with seven offences, including stealing a car, dangerous driving, breaching probation, and operating a vehicle when prohibited from doing so.
Court documents show that Leonardo has a lengthy criminal record dating back to May 2022 – 30 prior charges in total – including a handful of car thefts, dangerous driving, operation of a motor vehicle while prohibited from doing so, breach of probation, and multiple assaults, including assault with a weapon.
A 38-year-old woman, McKenzie Whiteman, of no fixed address, has also been charged with possession of property obtained by crime exceeding $5,000 in connection with the incident.
They were both scheduled to appear in bail court on April 12.
The brazen incident, which happened during one of the busiest parts of the day, has shocked people in the area, especially since Leonardo has several previous related charges.
“It’s just catch and release, catch and release, catch and release. Something needs to be done about that,” Stephen said.
“So many police I’ve never seen, so many police with guns in front with my eyes,” a local hair salon owner said.
With files from CTV News Toronto’s Janice Golding
