Man accused of threatening to shoot Toronto mayoral candidates arrested

A man who allegedly threatened to shoot mayoral candidates that led to the cancellation of Thursday’s debate has been arrested.

A man who allegedly made violent threats against Toronto mayoral hopefuls on Thursday that led to the cancellation of a debate and some candidates pausing public events has been arrested.

Toronto police tweeted on Thursday evening the arrest of the 29-year-old Junior Francois Lavagesse who was wanted for threatening bodily harm, carrying a concealed weapon and weapons dangerous.

According to police, the suspect entered a location in the area of Mortimer and Memorial Park avenues on Thursday morning and allegedly made remarks that he would shoot mayoral candidates before brandishing what appeared to be a firearm.

"No candidates were present when the threats were made today. As far as I'm aware, the location is unrelated to any candidate appearances," Toronto police spokesperson Stephanie Sayer told CP24 earlier.

Sayer added that police subsequently emailed all 102 mayoral candidates to inform them about the police investigation.

"This was a blanket threat and there was no specific candidate named," the email read.