Toronto's police chief has finally taken reporters questions after being noticeably absent following an incredibly violent weekend.
Eleven people were shot in Scarborough, three of them murdered.
Following the police service's Carribean Carnival kickoff event, Chief Mark Saunders was asked where he's been, denying requests to address the bedlam. "I'm always available," he says.
NEWSTALK 1010 offered several time slots and was told the chief was "unavailable."
"The important thing is that information does go out. Who it goes out by is another debate. But the fact the public needs to be informed of what's going on is the important piece and that was done," he defended.
As to whether hearing from him during such turmoil would be comforting for the city..."The public is comforted whenever any officer comes out and presents information regarding safety, public safety of the community. The men and women that were representing the investigations put out, I think, a very good, sound, and accurate portrayal of what was going on," he argues.
The violence in Scarborough this past weekend began at around 11:30 p.m. on Saturday when two men suffered non-life threatening injuries in an apparent drive-by shooting near Danforth Road and Savarin Street.
In the Malvern area, three people were shot, two of them died, after gunshots rang out during a backyard birthday party on Sunday at around 1 a.m. The 28-year-old woman who was celebrating her birthday was rushed to hospital and is listed in serious but stable condition.
Five people were shot inside a bar near Ellesmere and Victoria Park, also on Sunday, at around 2:30 a.m.
Sunday evening at around 6:45, a man in his 20s was shot near Empringham Drive and McLevin Avenue.