OTTAWA -- Ottawa police have identified the city's fourth homicide victim in five days.
Warsama Youssouf, 27, was found with gunshot wounds in a parking lot near the intersection of Cyrville Road and Meadowbrook Road at around 12:50 a.m. Sunday.
Police said they were first called to the area on reports of gunshots. Youssouf was brought to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
There is no word on any suspects at this time.
"By the time I pulled up here, I saw all the officers pumping somebody's chest," said Allain Ayotte about the situation early Sunday morning in the parking lot.
Ayotte was on his way home from work when he saw police cruisers at the plaza.
"I asked the wife if she seen or heard anything and she said, 'No, just firecrackers.' I was like, I don’t think that’s firecrackers," said Ayotte.
Coun. Tim Tierney spoke with Ottawa's police chief on Sunday about the shooting in his neighbourhood.
"Chief (Peter) Sloly said the nature of gang related activity has changed," said Tierney. "At this point from initial reports, it appears it was a targeted situation."
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Homicide Unit at 613-236-1222 ext. 5493. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).
This is the fourth homicide in Ottawa in five days, following a double-homicide at a strip mall on Alta Vista Drive that also resulted in a third person being injured, and a homicide in the Gloucester area that left one man dead.
In a statement to CTV News Ottawa, Mayor Jim Watson's office said the mayor spoke with police chief Peter Sloly to "express his deep concern" about the recent incidents.
The Ottawa Police Services Board is scheduled to meet at 12 p.m. Monday. An update on the police response to gun violence in the city is on the agenda.
"In the meantime, Mayor Watson stresses the importance of contacting the Ottawa Police Service or Crime Stoppers if they have any information on these acts of violence," the statement from the mayor's office said.
