Three killed in apparent Toronto crossbow attack

Aug. 25, 2016: Police stand in front of a house in Scarborough, Ont. after three people were killed in a crossbow incident (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Three people were killed Thursday after they were apparently shot with a crossbow in Toronto's east end.

Police said the bodies of two men and a woman were found in a Scarborough garage. A crossbow was found near the bodies.

Constable Jennifer Sidhu told the Canadian Press there were other "things" found in the area that could have been used in the incident. She declined to elaborate.

Police said a suspect was in custody with injuries. The suspect was described as a 35-year-old man, but no other details were immediately available.

"We don't have any idea with regards to why this may have happened," Police Constable David Hopkinson told CBC News.

Det. Sgt. Mike Carbone said there was a link between the crossbow scene and a suspicious package investigation in a condo on Toronto's waterfront. The condo was evacuated as police cordoned off the area. Carbone said he understands the package has been cleared but declined to discuss what was found.

Neighbor Jerome Cruz told CTV News that he heard someone screaming for several minutes at around 1 p.m. local time. He also heard what sounded like “banging” in his neighbor’s backyard.

"Generally it is a very quiet neighborhood, we are very happy to live here," he said.

Another neighbor, Sadiya Haque, said she was surprised this happened in her usually tranquil neighborhood, adding that most of the people who live on that street are seniors.

Unlike guns, buying a crossbow does not require a license in Canada.

In December 2010, a man fired a bolt into his father's back at a Toronto public library branch in another crossbow incident that captured the city's attention. In that case, Zhou Fang then crushed his 52-year-old father's skull with a hammer.

Fang was initially charged with first-degree murder but the prosecution accepted a plea of second-degree murder after considering that he was the victim of long-term abuse at the hands of his father.

He was sentenced to life in prison in 2012.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.