Police appeal for witnesses in high-speed ambush and drive-by shooting in July

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Three men shot to death in a SUV in a high-speed ambush and drive-by shooting in July were killed by at least two gunman, police said this week.

Two or more gunmen using at least two weapons committed the murders, homicide detectives determined after an examination of shell casings and projectiles on Kipling Avenue southbound between the Gardiner Expressway off-ramp and Evans Avenue.? Police still need witnesses.

“We have some very good leads,” homicide Det.-Sgt. Dean Burks said Wednesday. “But we need witnesses. We’re quite confident there are lots of people out there who know who did this shooting. We’re appealing to those people to come forward.”

Police believe a dispute led to the murders.

“This shooting was in retaliation for a dispute between two individuals last year, precipitated by a shooting earlier in 2007,” Burks said. Burks added he could not comment further without jeopardizing the case.

The men were followed from Fluid Nightclub on Richmond Street West in the early hours of Sunday, July 20, police said.

During heavy rainfall, a black SUV descended on the gold-coloured Nissan Pathfinder carrying the four men on the westbound Gardiner off-ramp at Kipling. The Pathfinder’s driver navigated through a hail of gunfire and shattered glass during the high-speed ambush that killed his three friends.

The terrified driver drove his SUV onto side streets, before abandoning it on quiet, leafy Lunness Road in the Brown’s Line and Horner Avenue area.

Adrian Bannerman, 29, Aaron MacDonald, 20 and Kurt Charles, 27, were killed. Burks said police continue to believe the shooting was gang-related. Friends said none of the men killed were gang members. Two of the men had children, ages five and younger.

Anyone with information is asked to call the homicide squad at 416-808-7400.