Two people have been charged with attempted murder after three people were stabbed at a fraternity house Halloween party near the University of Toronto.
Among the victims was a 19-year-old man who was stabbed in the chest, and an 18-year-old man who was stabbed in the abdomen. Both of their injuries were life-threatening, police said Friday. A 25-year-old man was also stabbed in the leg. Two others were slashed.
The party was put on not by the Theta Delta Chi fraternity, which owns the house, but by a 20-year-old who had rented it for the night.
Christian Renaud says he paid $2,000 to throw a birthday party there for himself and his twin brother. He said the fraternity (known as TDX) had no part in holding the party and that he and his friends hired a DJ and bouncers on their own.
According to a Facebook poster for the event, tickets were $20 at the door (or $10 for women before midnight). By around 11:45 p.m., Mr. Renaud said roughly 400 people had shown up.
Among the costumed guests was an old friend of his, who he said was acting strangely and making people uncomfortable. He said the man became aggressive after he pulled him aside to confront him.
The man had a knife, and Mr. Renaud kicked him out of the party, along with a girl who was with him. Outside, the party had flooded onto the front lawn and side driveway. When the pair was denied re-entry to the house, police said, the man began slashing and stabbing at people around him.
Mr. Renaud says he was slashed in the chest during the confrontation, but is okay. He said Friday that he was still shocked by what had happened.
“It really hurts me,” he says.
Jacob Alves, 19, and a 15-year-old girl who cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, have been jointly charged with three counts of aggravated assault, three counts of assault with a weapon, dangerous use of a weapon, and attempted murder.
Madison Avenue north of Bloor Street remained blocked by police vehicles and yellow crime-scene tape on Friday morning. Forensic investigators took photographs and collected evidence on the porch area in front of the fraternity house. Bright orange and yellow evidence markers traced a path across the street to a large pool of red on the sidewalk opposite the house, where blood-soaked tissues and discarded blue medical gloves lay on the ground.
This stretch of the Annex neighbourhood is known for its mix of large, stately homes, some of them converted to offices, and often-run-down student housing, including fraternity and sorority houses.
The University of Toronto said it has had no association with fraternities since the 1960s. Fraternity houses on and around campus are independent houses that rent to students, but have no status and no dealings with the university.
The head office for Theta Delta Chi did not respond to interview requests. A member of the Toronto chapter, reached by phone Friday, declined to comment but said the event was not connected to the fraternity.
With files from Joe Friesen
Molly Hayes