Two men detained following shootings in south end

Ottawa police detectives are investigating three back-to-backto-back shootings that occurred in the city’s south end over three days, two of which saw stray bullets fly into homes.

Coun. Diane Deans says police have increased their presence in her ward and carried out a quick arrest in the most recent of the shootings. No injuries were reported in any of the three incidents.

Police were initially called to Zaidan and Lorry Greenberg drives around 11:30 p.m. Thursday after residents reported the sound of gunfire. Officers found shell casings nearby and arrested two men who were seen fleeing the scene.

Twenty-four-year-old Ali Dia of Ottawa and 29-year-old Eric St. Louis, from the Kingston area, had a handful of weapons charges laid against them, including careless use of a firearm, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, and unauthorized possession of a prohibited or restricted weapon. They were scheduled to appear in court Friday.

On Tuesday night, Oni Joseph dodged a bullet that grazed her son’s leg inside her home near Bank Street and Albion Road. Joseph told this newspaper she was in her second-floor bedroom at about 10:45 p.m., when she heard a series of “popping ” sounds, then something much louder, like a window shattering, then air rushing by her face. Pretty soon, she was “half on the ground” and reaching for her phone to call 911.

And on Thursday around 9 p.m., a women found bullet holes in her Cahill Drive West home several hours after she heard gunfire. Police later found a bullet lodged in a futon and several bullet holes through a wall connecting to the next unit.

Deans has consistently advocated for more officers on the police force. The councillor voted against the police budget, believing the numbers they were going to spend would still mean the force was understaffed. She encouraged the board and her fellow councillors to approve the force’s request to hire 10 additional experienced officers as direct-entry hires from other police services to combat gun violence in the city.

Deans says the rise in street crime isn’t specific to her ward or the city, but still, “it’s summer and there seems to be a bit of a hotbed of activity right now.”

“My No. 1 concern is always community safety and when stray bullets are flying into people’s homes then your confidence gets rattled,” Deans said. “It’s been a tough and trying week for my constituents, and for me, and I think for the Ottawa Police Service, too.”

On Thursday, Deans met with organizers at LaFontaine Cooperative Housing who are interested in forming a neighbourhood watch. She’s also had two meetings with Deputy Chief Steve Bell in the past two weeks, requesting an increase in police presence in the south end.

School resource officers, who aren’t in schools during summer holidays, have been deployed to patrol the area. On Thursday, officers were patrolling the area on bikes, too.

“At the heart of it, when this has taken hold on the street, we do need more resources,” Deans said.

Police continue to investigate the shootings.