One bombing suspect may be a woman, police say
Two people who entered eatery first thought to be men
MISSISSAUGA, ONT. — One of two suspects wanted in connection with an explosion that injured 15 people at a restaurant west of Toronto may be a woman, contrary to earlier reports, police said Tuesday.
Investigators originally said both suspects seen on video entering the Bombay Bhel restaurant in Mississauga, Ont., on
May 24 were men, but new video evidence and witness input suggests at least one of the suspects could be female, said Peel Region police Supt. Rob Ryan.
Police have finished processing the scene of the blast and are now analyzing a collection of evidence that includes fingerprints, DNA, surveillance video, interviews with customers at the restaurant that night and remnants of the explosive device itself, Ryan said.
“Investigators spent hundreds of hours over the weekend combing the scene for every fine detail that might help them to understand what happened that night,” he said.
“What led the two suspects to detonate this device is still not clear,” he added. “We do not have clear motive and no one has claimed responsibility.”
The suspects were in and out of the restaurant in a short amount of time, and fled the scene on foot before their homemade explosive device detonated, police said.
Investigators have traced the suspects’ escape route with drones and dogs, and believe the pair headed eastward from Bombay Bhel, cutting through a construction site and then a residential subdivision, Ryan said.
Police have said they think the suspects ultimately got into a vehicle.
Ryan said assistance from the community would be “critical” to the investigation, and urged anyone with information to contact police, whether they witnessed any part of what happened the night of the bombing, or know something about the suspects.
“We know there are people out there who know who did this, and it’s time for them to do the right thing and come forward,” he said.
Ryan said investigators still don’t know the motive for the attack, but said the suspects would be charged with attempted murder, among other offences, if caught.
The 15 people injured in the explosion — three of them critically — have all since been released from hospital, police said.