Police arrest homicide suspect during raids targeting drug trafficking network

Toronto: A 22-year-old man who was wanted on a Canada-wide warrant in connection with a fatal shooting outside an east-end Toronto Community Housing building more than a year ago has been arrested during a series of raids targeting a drug trafficking network.
Officers with the Toronto police drug squad executed a total of 10 search warrants at addresses in Toronto, Barrie, Innisfil and Utopia on Wednesday morning, seizing weapons, cash and a variety of drugs with an estimated street value of $1.1 million.
During the execution of the search warrants police also arrested a total of nine people, including the homicide suspect.

According to Insp. Howie Page, the suspect had not been identified as part of the initial investigation into the drug trafficking network and police only realized who he was once they had him in custody.
“When the officers arrested him he lied about his name throughout the investigation and it was just good police work that helped his true identity and the warrant come to light,” he told reporters at a news conference on Thursday.
A warrant was first issued for the suspect in June, 2014, less than a month after 20-year-old Douglas Parker and two of his friends were shot after getting out of a cab at 66 Walpole Avenue, near Greenwood Avenue and Gerrard Street.
Parker was pronounced dead at the scene while his friends received non life-threatening injuries.
The suspect, Conrad Grizzle, will be charged with one count of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder in connection with the shooting. Police also say that Grizzle will face a number of drug and gun-related charges.
The search warrants executed on Wednesday resulted in the seizure of a 12 gauge shotgun, 90 pounds of marijuana, three kilograms of powdered cocaine, one kilogram of MDMA and one kilogram of hashish.
Police say the drugs were being sold to mid-level and street-level dealers in the GTA and surrounding communities in Southern Ontario and were already packaged for sale.
“The packaging of the drugs is an important factor. These individuals were part of a sophisticated network,” Page said.