The 2025 Toronto Homicide Victim List is available here
Toronto police responded to a shooting at Military Trail and Old Ring Road on December 23rd at approximately 3:34 pm.
On arrival, police located Shivank Avasthi, 20, of Toronto, with a gunshot wound; he was pronounced deceased on scene.
According to reports, Avasthi was a third-year doctoral student at the University of Toronto Scarborough campus (UTSC) and actively involved in the UTSC cheerleading team.
The University of Toronto issued an alert stating police were conducting an investigation at the Highland Creek Valley at UTSC. Police have advised the University to lift the lock down and the shelter in place is no longer required.
On January 6th 2026, Toronto police announced that Babatunde Afuwape, 28, of Toronto, has been arrested and charged with First Degree Murder.
Afuwape was known to police. According to Parole Board of Canada documents obtained by Global News, Afuwape has violent criminal history that includes convictions for robbery, firearms offences, and repeatedly breaching court orders. He was sentenced in 2023 and 2024, ordered to provide a DNA sample, and given a 10-year firearms prohibition.
The records outline a 2018 robbery in Mississauga in which Afuwape and an accomplice attacked and stabbed a 67-year-old pizza delivery driver before stealing his vehicle. He was arrested a week later while driving the stolen car.
The documents also describe a 2020 gun investigation in Scarborough that led police to Afuwape’s residence, where they found a loaded handgun, ammunition, and spent shell casings. The Parole Board cited the seriousness of his offences, repeated non-compliance with court orders, and the unnecessary level of violence used as aggravating factors.
Background information in the PBC records points to early drug use, unstable employment, and limited education. While no court-ordered psychological assessments were completed, later evaluations placed him in a low-to-moderate to high risk category for reoffending, depending on the assessment used.
Despite being released on bail several times, the PBC noted he repeatedly violated conditions, fled police, breached house arrest, and on Dec. 17, 2022, Atuwape’s father notified police that cut off his electronic monitoring bracelet.
In a decision dated Nov. 17, 2025, the PBC extended Afuwape’s day parole for three months and recommended a further panel hearing to assess his progress.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-7400, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or at www.222tips.com.