York Regional Police have charged a 20-year-old suspect, Illia Ayo, with first-degree murder in connection with the fatal shooting of Alexander Mills-Smith, 24, of Toronto. Ayo was apprehended on April 19 while in a stolen vehicle in the Jane St.-Finch Ave. area of Toronto. He was also charged with 12 firearm-related offences and breach of probation. A second man, Abdinasir Aden, 20, of Toronto, was also charged with 11 firearm-related offences and accessory after the fact in relation to the case.
York Regional Police responded to calls for a shooting on March 9 in the area of Dufferin St. and Summeridge Dr. in Vaughan, Ontario, and found Mills-Smith with gunshot wounds. Despite being taken to the hospital, Mills-Smith was pronounced dead a short time later. During the investigation, police found two additional victims with gunshot wounds in Toronto, a 20-year-old man with serious injuries and a 21-year-old woman with minor injuries. Both were treated at a hospital and discharged.
Ayo had been wanted on a Canada-wide warrant for first-degree murder since March 2021. Police believed he had fled the Toronto area but continued to actively search for him. Following Ayo’s arrest, York Regional Police thanked the public for their assistance in the investigation and stated that they would continue to work towards making the community a safer place.
The charges against Ayo and Aden have not been proven in court. Anyone with further information is urged to contact the Homicide Unit of the York Regional Police at 1-866-876-5423, ext. 7865, or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).