A 13-year-old boy has been arrested in connection with the fatal stabbing of an elderly woman in Pickering on Thursday, Durham Regional Police confirmed.
Chief Peter Moreira said the youth was taken into custody “without incident” by the tactical support unit. Authorities say the incident appears to be random, and the investigation is in its early stages.
“We’re announcing that we’ve arrested a 13-year-old male from Pickering, and he’s been arrested by our tactical support unit without incident,” Chief Moreira said.
The police had issued a shelter-in-place advisory earlier in the day as they searched for the suspect.
“At this point here you can go freely about your day-to-day lives,” Moreira said. “I also want to thank our officers who brought a quick resolution to this horrible incident.”
The victim, described by police as an elderly woman, has not been publicly identified. Her age and other personal details were not released.
“I want to express my deepest condolences to the family of the deceased female,” Moreira said. “Our service will be providing her support, all of the family support, for the foreseeable future.”
Investigators are still working to determine whether the victim and the accused had any prior connection. “That forms part of our investigation. At this point, there doesn’t seem to be, but the investigation will reveal exactly what the relationship, if any, existed between the victim and who he alleged to be the perpetrator,” said Moreira.
The chief did not disclose details about how the suspect was located or what evidence led to the arrest. “I’m not going to get into the details of the arrest. The investigation is in its infancy at this point and that may form part of the evidence,” he said.
Moreira acknowledged the concern over the suspect’s age. “I think anytime one human being takes the life of another it’s a concern. Should be a concern to all of us,” he said. “There’s an allegation that has been made at this point here involving a very young person and I’m going to let the courts make the final determination in terms of culpability, if any.”
Moreira credited the swift resolution to collaboration between several agencies, including the Ontario Provincial Police and the Toronto Police Service. “This resolution was made possible due to the number of resources we had available and is a reflection on the important partnerships we have with other public safety agencies,” he said.