Police investigate Toronto’s first homicide of the year at Keele and Steeles bar
Police continue to investigate after a man was stabbed to death on January 1 at a sports bar near Keele and Steeles, the first homicide of 2013 in Toronto.
Around 5 a.m., 22-year-old O’Marie Brooks was stabbed in an altercation that took place in the parking lot of Randy’s Sports Bar, located at 4801 Keele Street, police say.
Friends brought the victim to Humber River Regional Hospital where he died from his injuries shortly after his admission that morning.
The exact cause of death could not be disclosed by primary investigator, Det. Sgt. Dean Burks.
Nicholas Silvera, 29, turned himself in to Toronto Police the same day at 3:20 p.m, and appeared in court 1000 Finch Avenue West, January 2 at 10 a.m., says Burks.
Silvera was charged with second-degree murder.
Burks could not disclose what Silvera admitted to, but confirms there were no accomplices.
Silvera was not previously known to police, but Brooks, the victim, had a history with the Toronto Police and was known to them for crimes committed in the past, says Burks.
Burks says that an altercation between Brooks and Silvera began outside the bar, and that both men had been drinking. The two did not know each other prior to the altercation.
“There is no footage of the exact altercation, but we have seen video surveillance from the area,” he says.
Over the course of the investigation, Burks and his team have discovered the motive behind the altercation, but he is unable to disclose their findings.
Burks says he has also spoken to witnesses of the incident, but is unable to release further information on their involvement in the altercation or what their relationships were to Brooks or Silvera.
By Alex Hum, Features Editor
