67-Year-Old Man Charged With Second-Degree Murder in Toronto’s 7th Homicide of 2026

A 67-year-old man is facing second-degree murder charges in connection with a fatal daylight shooting in Toronto, marking the seventh homicide in the city this year.

The Toronto Police Service responded to the city’s north end just before 12:30 p.m. on April 30, where they found a man with multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene after life-saving measures were attempted, police said in a May 3 press release.

The shooting victim has since been identified as 47-year-old Daniel Stopnicki, a Toronto resident.

Officers arrested a suspect at the scene shortly after the shooting, police said on social media. Michaelo Markicevic, 67, of Toronto is facing a second-degree murder charge in connection with Stopnicki’s death. The charge has not been tested in court. 

Police have not released any details on a suspected motive for the shooting, but it appears to have taken place near the baseball diamond at Wenderley Park in a residential North York neighbourhood. The park is surrounded by single-detached dwellings to the north, west, and south.

The police previously said the shooting appeared to be an “isolated” incident and there was no threat to public safety.

Stopnicki’s fatal shooting marks the fifth such incident in the city this year. There was also one fatal stabbing and one murder with an unidentified weapon so far in 2026 for a total of seven homicides, according to Toronto police statistics. 

2026 Homicides

The year began with a fatal shooting on a GO bus near the Yorkdale mall in North York on Jan. 4, resulting in a first-degree murder charge for a 40-year-old man. The victim was identified as Osemwengie Irorere, 46, of Nigeria.

The second murder occurred one month later at a Scarborough coffee shop. Seventeen-year-old Kian Sam was shot on Feb. 5 and was found suffering with “serious” gunshot wounds when emergency responders arrived at the scene. He succumbed to his injuries in hospital and a 15-year-old boy was charged with second-degree murder in connection with his death.

The city’s third murder occurred just two days later in the parking lot of the shopping centre where police found a 37-year-old Chandan Kumar Raja Nandakumar of Brampton suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. He was rushed to hospital in life-threatening condition, where he later died from his injuries.

Police arrested and charged a 19-year-old Edmonton man with first-degree murder a month later in connection with the shooting.

Toronto police identified 60-year-old Xian Wei Shao of Toronto as the city’s fourth homicide victim of the year. Police said that her March 11 death was “deemed to be suspicious.”

Sheng Long Wang, 60, of Toronto, was arrested on March 21 and charged with second-degree murder in connection with Shao’s death.

In another case, police were called out to a disturbance on March 25 and found a man stabbed to death at the scene. The victim was later identified as 27-year-old Ahmed Hassan Asif.

Police arrested a 21-year-old suspect three days later and charged him with robbery and second-degree murder.

The sixth murder occurred in a parking lot on April 24 where officers found 30-year-old Ahmed Noor Ishmail of Toronto suffering from gunshot wounds inside a vehicle. He was rushed to hospital but died of his injuries. Police are on the lookout for three unknown suspects.

If Toronto’s 2026 murder rate stays consistent, the city will be on track to record fewer homicides this year than in 2025. There were 45 homicides in the city last year, according to police statistics.

Last year’s rate, while higher than this year, was significantly lower than the previous five years.

There were 85 homicides in 2024, 73 in 2023, 71 in 2022, 85 in 2021, and 71 in 2020.