{"id":800128,"date":"2026-07-13T23:42:16","date_gmt":"2026-07-13T23:42:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/800128\/"},"modified":"2026-07-13T23:42:16","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T23:42:16","slug":"salsa-on-st-clair-shooting-police-id-victims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/800128\/","title":{"rendered":"Salsa on St. Clair shooting: Police ID victims"},"content":{"rendered":"

Police have identified two people who were killed during a brazen shooting at a Toronto street festival over the weekend that left thousands of attendees scrambling to get to safety.<\/p>\n

Shaquan Quashie, 25, and Cesar Vernaza, 20, were both shot as two groups exchanged gunfire during the Salsa on St. Clair street festival on Saturday night.<\/p>\n

One of them was pronounced dead on scene, while the other succumbed to their injuries in hospital. <\/p>\n

Five other people were also hit by the gunfire and taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.<\/p>\n

At a news conference on Monday, Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw confirmed that Quashie and Vernaza were \u201ctargeted,\u201d adding that the other victims were \u201cbystanders\u201d merely caught in the gunfire.<\/p>\n

Denkiw said that the deceased individuals were known to one another but didn\u2019t elaborate on the nature of their relationship. <\/p>\n

\"\"TPS Chief Myron Demkiw July 13 Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw speaks during a July 13 news conference. <\/p>\n

Demkiw then went on to say that events like the one that occurred on Saturday night \u201cneed to serve as a reckoning\u201d when it comes to the need for action to address gun violence.<\/p>\n

\u201cShootings are down in this city over 26 per cent compared to the same time last year but when a brazen shooting occurs in a public setting like what happened this weekend it understandably shakes the sense of safety and security that Torontonians understandably expect and deserve,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

Police initially reported \u2018active shooter\u2019<\/p>\n

Saturday night\u2019s shooting occurred at around 8 p.m. on St. Clair Avenue West near Arlington Avenue as thousands of people took in the annual Salsa on St. Clair festival.<\/p>\n

Police initially said that they were looking for an \u201cactive shooter\u201d in the moments after gunfire erupted.<\/p>\n

However, they clarified at a news conference later that night that those initial reports were incorrect.<\/p>\n

Demkiw said two firearms were ultimately recovered from the scene following the shooting. <\/p>\n

Investigation continues<\/p>\n

At this point, no arrests have been made and Demkiw said police have set up an online portal<\/a> for members of the public to upload any images or footage from the neighbourhood that could be relevant to the ongoing investigation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are not saying anything about suspects at this time. It is very much still early \u2013 frankly hours \u2013 and the amount of video and witness statements to go through is exceptional,\u201d the police chief said. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur investigators are diligently pouring through that and doing everything they can to run down every single lead.\u201d<\/p>\n

Festival safety questioned<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s shooting at one of Toronto\u2019s most popular summer festivals has raised questions about whether additional security measures are needed, with Coun. Josh Matlow telling Newstalk 1010 earlier in the day that he has heard from some members of the neighbourhood who want Salsa on St. Clair relocated to a park or perhaps shut down earlier in the night. <\/p>\n

Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow, however, released a video message<\/a> earlier on Monday in which she said that we cannot \u201clet reckless criminals stop Toronto\u2019s tradition of outdoor street festivals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Speaking with reporters, Denkiw said street festivals are a \u201cvital part of Toronto\u2019s vibrant culture\u201d and should continue. But he did concede that the events of this weekend \u201cunderscore the need for ongoing discussions between the police, the city and event organizers about the measure necessary to keep public events safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere needs to be a discussion about how we allow people to enjoy street festivals freely with an appropriate police presence and if we need to introduce additional security measures, such as controlled access points and security screening,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Victims had grown up together<\/p>\n

Police have refused to speculate about what might have motivated the shooting, other than saying that both victims, who both grew up together in a housing complex nearby, appear to have been targeted. <\/p>\n

\"\"Shaquan Quashie, 25, left, and Cesar Vernaza, 20 Shaquan Quashie, 25, left, and Cesar Vernaza, 20, were killed in a July 11 shooting at the Salsa on St. Clair festival. (TPS photos) <\/p>\n

Speaking with CTV News Toronto on Monday, the mother of one of the victims Shaquan Quashie said her son had given her a hug earlier in the day and told her he was headed to the Salsa on St. Clair festival. <\/p>\n

\u201cI said, \u2018You don\u2019t even speak the language where are you going, bro?\u2019 \u2013 and the very last thing he said to me is \u2018God is good\u2019,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"\"Sherodon Quashie, mom of murder victim Shaquan Quashie Sherodon Quashie, mom of Salsa on St. Clair murder victim Shaquan Quashie, speaks with CTV News Toronto on July 13. <\/p>\n

Sherodon Quashie said that when she learned of the shooting later that night she ran to the festival and was later taken to Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre where she\u2019d wait for hours prior to being notified that her only son, Shaquan, had succumbed to his injuries. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t have a son. My son is gone. My daughter, now, doesn\u2019t have a brother,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Quashie said she wants police to catch those responsible so she can better understand what happened. <\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m angry. I want to see his face. I want to know. I want to look him into his face into his eyes and answer one question: why. That\u2019s all I want to know, why,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Sacred fire, vigil to be held Monday evening<\/p>\n

A sacred fire and vigil will be held on Monday evening at a local church for the community to begin the process of healing from the Salsa on St. Clair mass shooting.<\/p>\n

The sacred fire will begin at 7 p.m. in the Healing Garden at St. Matthew\u2019s United Church at 729 St. Clair Ave. E. at Rushton Road.<\/p>\n

The vigil is set for 8 p.m. in the church\u2019s parking lot. It will be lead by Elder Catherine Brooks, with Pastor Miguel Rojas of Iglesia Hispano Cafe con Cristo and Pastor Jenni Feheley of St. Micheal\u2019s and All Angels Anglican Church.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll are welcome to gather as one community of peace,\u201d organizers said in a post on Facebook.<\/p>\n

\"\"Toronto Police hold back crowds as they respond to an active shooter at the Salsa on St. Clair event in Toronto, on Saturday, July 11, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Keito Newman Toronto Police hold back crowds as they respond to an active shooter at the Salsa on St. Clair event in Toronto, on Saturday, July 11, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Keito Newman <\/p>\n

Salsa on St. Clair was attended by an estimated 13,000 people. The festival\u2019s final day on Sunday was subsequently cancelled<\/a> due to the ongoing police investigation. <\/p>\n

With files from CTV News Toronto\u2019s Janice Golding <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Police have identified two people who were killed during a brazen shooting at a Toronto street festival over…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":800129,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[712,49,48,44],"class_list":["post-800128","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-apple-news","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=800128"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800128\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/800129"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=800128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=800128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=800128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}