Toronto police report fewer youth gun arrests, but worry gang recruitment online rising
So far in 2025, police say they have made 83 youth firearm arrests, compared to 105 over the same period last year — a drop of 21 per cent.
However, Insp. Paul Krawczyk isn't celebrating just yet.
This is still the second-worst year for such arrests in the last five, he told CBC Toronto. "I worry that [last year] is not just a spike, but obviously I don't have a crystal ball."
Police say there were 175 total youth firearm arrests in 2024, which was 59 per cent higher than the 110 arrests made in 2023. In 2022, there were 94 youth firearm arrests, and 83 in 2021.
But while arrests are down so far this year, there have already been a number of high profile crimes involving teens. In January, Toronto police arrested and charged four teenage boys they believed were behind a carjacking and two robberies that month. Three teens were charged with first-degree murder in connection with a fatal double shooting in Toronto's Riverdale neighbourhood in April, and last month, a 15-year-old boy was killed in a shooting in York.
WATCH | Toronto's youth firearm arrests spiked in 2024, up 161% in 2 years:
Krawczyk says police are a major partner in FOCUS Toronto — a program made up of several agencies and community groups that come together to help prevent crime and connect with youth in vulnerable communities.
The hope, he says, is to help stop gang recruitment before it happens.
"I do worry that youth, through social media, through the apps on their phones, are getting contracted to do some of these shootings," said Krawczyk.
"A lot of money is being thrown at them, and we may not see a decrease without the combined efforts of everyone."
Those efforts include community programs like the One by One Movement. Founder Marcell Wilson says the non-profit organization is focused on decreasing acts of violence and connecting with vulnerable youth before they're potentially exposed to crime.
A former gang leader-turned-anti-violence advocate, Wilson says the issue of vulnerable young people being recruited on social media platforms by gang members is underaddressed.
His organization has a program dedicated to the issue, targeted at parents and community members. It starts with the basics of social media and how the platforms work, and goes into some of the language youth use that their parents may be unfamiliar with, aiming to close the generational disconnect when it comes to what young people are doing on their phones.
"It's about teaching them the nuances of the platforms being used and even sometimes language," Wilson said.
"You'll have a parent who doesn't understand the language being used and because of that, they have no idea their children are involved in certain activities."
Krawczyk says to deal with gun violence overall, police have been strategically deploying more resources to specific areas, based on crime data across Toronto.
"Clearly if police are out there, you know it's going to make a difference and deter some of these shootings and discharges," he said.
Last month, the city announced an extra $5 million in funding for anti-violence programs for young people. Mayor Olivia Chow said the safety plan will help 3,000 young people and more than 500 families participate in summer recreation and youth violence prevention programs.
Initiatives like that are applauded by Toronto police and organizations like Wilson's, but both say parents should also keep on top of their kids' social media presence, and tech giants should also put more resources into combatting youth crime on their platforms.
"There's not enough cohesion between the different entities, between the community, the organizations, law enforcement and the decision makers," Wilson said.
"We'd like to see much more investment in the preventative space … putting a lot more focus on social media would make a huge difference for sure."
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