CORRECTION: TORONTO POLICE SAY FESTIVAL SHOOTING WAS NOT AN ACTIVE SHOOTER; TWO GUNS RECOVERED, STILL NO ARRESTS

Toronto Police walked back the active shooter designation issued during Saturday night's mass shooting at the Salsa on St. Clair festival, at a news conference held late Saturday. Deputy Chief Frank Barredo told reporters, in comments carried by CBS News, that "there was some concern of an active shooter" and that "that turned out not to be the case." Barredo said officers found six people with gunshot wounds, two of whom died at the scene, and that two firearms were recovered across three separate crime scenes. Police said the call came in at 8:12 p.m. ET for a shooting on St. Clair Avenue West near Arlington Avenue.

Barredo said the shooting appears to have been an exchange of gunfire between individuals, telling reporters that "there was an exchange of gunfire between individuals and that two firearms were recovered," and that police no longer believe there is an ongoing threat to the area, according to CBS News, CBC News and CP24. He said no arrests have been made, that the exact number of suspects involved is still unknown, and that it is not known whether any of the suspects were among the people shot. No suspect description has been released. Barredo said about 13,000 people were believed to have been at the festival at the time.

Casualty figures still differ across outlets and Mission Offline is not picking between them. CBS News, attributing Barredo, reports six people shot in total: two who died at the scene and four wounded who were taken to hospital in serious condition. CBC News, CP24 and NBC News have framed the same police figures as two dead and six injured. Earlier copy attributed to The Associated Press said the shooting killed two people and wounded four, and CTV News initially reported three injured. The confirmed floor police have stated on the record is six people located with gunshot wounds, two of them dead.

Still unconfirmed: the identities of the two people killed, the conditions of the wounded, how many shots were fired, how many suspects were involved, and any description of them. Barredo said it is "very difficult to say with certainty what precipitated this," and Mission Offline is not characterizing this shooting beyond what police have stated on the record. Ontario Premier Doug Ford said on social media that he was "devastated by the senseless violence" at the festival and that the person responsible must be caught and brought to justice. What to watch next: any arrest, charges or suspect description, formal identification of the two people killed, and any further Toronto Police briefing.

Fact-check date: July 12, 2026
Article type: Breaking / Developing
Sources: Toronto Police Service (Deputy Chief Frank Barredo news conference); CBS News; CBC News; CP24; CTV News; CNN; NBC News; The Associated Press