Assault suspect, 19, dies at U of T campus dorm in Mississauga, SIU investigating

Ontario’s police watchdog has launched an investigation after a 19-year-old man under investigation for assault was found dead at the University of Toronto’s Mississauga campus as officers surrounded the area.

Preliminary information suggests the man died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after Peel regional police officers found him at a UTM student residence, the Special Investigations Unit said on Tuesday.

The school had issued a campus-wide shelter-in-place order Monday night as police worked to evacuate students from the McLuhan Court residence, a complex that houses hundreds of first-year students, following reports of an armed individual inside.

The order was lifted after Peel police said early Tuesday morning that the incident had been resolved and there was no threat to public safety.

The SIU alleged the man who died had assaulted a woman in Brampton on Monday afternoon.

Peel police Const. Tyler Bell said the assault was a case of intimate partner violence that involved a handgun. When police were later called about an armed individual at UTM, officers quickly connected the two incidents, Bell said at a news conference Tuesday.

“That’s why our response was very heavy to get here to prevent the possibility of a mass casualty situation,” he said.

When officers arrived on scene, the suspect fired a gun inside a dorm room and officers immediately worked to evacuate the residence and surrounding area, police said.

After making unsuccessful attempts to communicate with the suspect inside, officers entered the unit and found the man dead at around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday morning.

Bell said there’s no indication the man was a student at UTM, and he did not have a gun licence. Police believe he was visiting someone at the campus residence though the relationship between the two is unclear.

The SIU said it invoked its mandate because Peel police officers were in and around the scene at the time of the man’s death. No other injuries were reported.

SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette said an autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday and the man’s family has been notified.

During the ordeal only one shot was fired, Denette said – the apparent self-inflicted gunshot that killed the 19-year-old. However, police discharged about 20 anti-riot weapon, or ARWEN, rounds while trying to arrest the individual, she said.

ARWEN weapons launch less-lethal projectiles and are often used in crowd-control and riot situations.

UTM said its campus remained open Tuesday but classes were cancelled, calling the incident “deeply unsettling to members of the UTM community” in a statement.

The school said it expanded drop-in counselling services Tuesday for those impacted by the incident and on-site support is available for students in residence.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 3, 2026.

Kathryn Mannie, The Canadian Press