71-year-old Toronto woman killed in ‘unprovoked’ North York stabbing as she loaded groceries into her car

In a news release on Thursday night, police also released photos of the suspect, warning the public not to approach him but call 911 instead.

The stabbing happened just outside the busy Iqbal Foods grocery store. Police had cordoned off part of the parking lot, as forensic investigators were on scene for much of the day inspecting the scene. The rest of the plaza remained busy and many shoppers were confused by the heavy police presence. 

“It happened between those two cars,” said a man who gave his name as Mohammed, and said he worked at the plaza. “It was early, and the grocery store was the only place that was open around here.”

The plaza is next too a Fire and EMS station. Upon arrival, officers located a woman with stab wounds, Duty Insp. Phil Sinclair told media.  She was transported  by paramedics but was pronounced dead at the hospital, Sinclair added.

“This appears to be an unprovoked attack,” he said, though the relationship between the victim and suspect is currently unknown. 

“We understand this is a very deeply concerning incident,” Sinclair said. “It happened during the daytime hours, in a busy plaza, when many patrons were out simply just shopping, getting their groceries or different items in this mall.”

There is no evidence to suggest that there’s a threat to public safety, he said, adding that the investigation is being treated with the “utmost of seriousness.” 

The small plaza is surrounded by apartment buildings and people were steadily coming to visit their doctor, go to the pharmacy and get their groceries. 

“I can’t believe this happened here,” said Adnan Patel, coming out of the grocery store. “We come here all the time. Everyone around here does.”

Police describe the suspect as a male, between five-foot-seven to five-foot-10, wearing dark clothing and a balaclava. He was armed with a sharp edged weapon, possibly a knife, and fled the area on foot, Sinclair added.

Officers had also cordoned off an area behind the plaza, near the loading dock for the store, as that is believed to be where the suspect fled the scene. 

Earlier Thursday morning, a man in his 20s was fatally shot in the parking lot at Yorkdale mall, around 13 kilometres west. It was “not a random shooting,” police said, and no suspect description has been released. 

Police are not aware of any connection between the fatal stabbing and shooting at Yorkdale mall, officers said. 

“We have a number of resources on scene, including our police dogs, drones and a number of searchers,” Sinclair said.

With files from Jake Edmiston