Kingston mayor calls for closure of supervised consumption site after 2 killed in assault

Police in Kingston, Ont., say they’ve arrested a male suspect after a violent daytime assault left two people dead and one in hospital with life-threatening injuries.

Kingston police say they arrested the suspect without further incident just before 5 p.m. Thursday, after negotiating his surrender for several hours.

Spokesperson Const. Anthony Colangeli says police received reports that the suspect may have been wielding an edged or blunt weapon, possibly both.

Police say officers were called to an encampment around a safe injection site and Integrated Care Hub around 10:40 a.m. after a report of a serious assault.

Police closed Montreal Street between Railway Street and Hickson Avenue.

In a social media post, Kingston Mayor Bryan Paterson said he was “absolutely horrified” by the situation and called for the encampment’s removal and for the supervised consumption site to close.

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“We need to clear the encampment, close this safe injection site and the (integrated care hub) until we can find a better way to support our most vulnerable residents,” he wrote.

“I will not stand by and wait until more people die — enough is enough.”

Incident at the safe injection site/ Consumption Treatment Service and Integrated Care Hub at 661 Montreal St. pic.twitter.com/EskxAHUQbX

— Bryan Paterson (@MayorPaterson) September 12, 2024