---
title: "10 Dead, 15 Injured After Van Driver Intentionally Runs Down Pedestrians in Toronto on Monday"
description: "The suspect in a devastating van attack in Toronto that left ten people dead and another fifteen injured has been charged with ten counts of first-degree murder as investigators in Canada continue to piece together his motivations, the CBC reports."
date: "2018-04-24"
modified: "2018-04-24"
authors:
  - name: "Kyle Cheromcha"
    job_title: "Editor-in-Chief"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/kyle-cheromcha"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/20366/10-dead-15-injured-after-van-driver-intentionally-runs-down-pedestrians-in-toronto"
categories:
  - "News"
tags:
  - "attack"
  - "Canada"
  - "Crime"
  - "police"
  - "Toronto"
  - "Van"
---

# 10 Dead, 15 Injured After Van Driver Intentionally Runs Down Pedestrians in Toronto on Monday

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2018/04/ap_139494630542.jpg>)
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The suspect in a devastating van attack in Toronto that left 10 people dead and another 15 injured has been charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder as investigators in Canada continue to piece together his motivations, [the *CBC* reports.](<https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-van-attack-charges-suspect-1.4632509>)

Just before 1:30 pm on Monday, police say 25-year-old Alek Minassian drove a rental Ryder cargo van onto the sidewalk at the intersection of Yonge Street and Finch Avenue in the North York neighborhood of Toronto. He then continued south for at least a half a mile, mowing down pedestrians "one by one" and leaving a trail of carnage in his wake, a horrified witness [told the *New York Times.*](<https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/23/world/toronto-van.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=first-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news>)

https://twitter.com/_/status/988722256984633344

On Tuesday, the first victim of the attack was formally identified: Anne Marie D'Amico, an employee at an investment firm whose headquarters are located along that fateful stretch of road. A colleague [told the *CBC*](<https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-van-attack-charges-suspect-1.4632509>) that she was "always smiling" and "a very warm, friendly presence," while a friend wrote on Facebook that D'Amico was "a rock, a champion, a soldier, a nurturer, a friend... what we all needed, when we needed it."

Minassian then allegedly pulled the van to a stop and engaged in a tense standoff with a Toronto police officer that was captured on video by another witness. In the clip, the suspect is standing in front of the damaged van and pointing an object at the officer, yelling for police to kill him.

https://twitter.com/_/status/988569655370534913

When it becomes clear that's not going to happen—Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders told reporters that his officers are taught to use "as little force as possible," and that the object in his hands wasn't a gun—he appears to surrender and is taken into custody.

https://twitter.com/_/status/988576516916199425

As officials continue the grim, heartbreaking work of identifying all the victims and rebuilding a city's shattered peace, attention has swung to the motivations behind the deadly rampage. A resident of nearby Richmond Hill and a student at a local college, Minassian was reportedly "unknown" to Canadian law enforcement prior to Monday's attack. Fellow students [told the *BBC*](<https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43877137>) that he kept to himself and occasionally acted out in strange ways, but that he ultimately seemed harmless.

https://twitter.com/_/status/988781760824659968

According to Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, there are "no national security connections" to this incident, and authorities don't believe Minassian was connected to any domestic or foreign terror groups. On Tuesday, [a report emerged](<https://www.cnn.com/2018/04/24/us/toronto-suspect-what-we-know/index.html>) that Minassian had written a Facebook post just before the attack in support of American spree killer Elliot Rodger, who killed six people in Isla Vista, California in 2014 over his alleged rejection by women and society.

## Author
Overseeing an expert staff of writers and editors from his lair in Los Angeles, Kyle shapes The Drive’s singular approach to covering the automotive industry and car culture. He’s been with the site as a writer since 2017, taking over as editor in 2019. On a daily basis, Kyle is responsible for directing The Drive's editorial news and car review content strategies, setting special coverage priorities, managing complex reporting projects, and ensuring what you read on the page meets our high internal standards for quality and trustworthiness. He is also the executive producer of The Drive's YouTube channel, which was relaunched in February 2024 to great acclaim and has accumulated over 14M new views in its first year back on the scene. He hosts a biweekly series on the channel where he breaks down fascinating and complicated stories from the automotive world.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/kylecheromcha.bsky.social>)  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/kylecheromcha>)  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-cheromcha-1550248a/>)