Maple Express | October 17, 2026: Two vehicles torched in west-end Toronto, police probe suspected arson

Source: CP24

1. Two vehicles catch fire in west-end Toronto; police investigating suspected arson

Toronto police are investigating a suspected arson after two vehicles caught fire in the city's west end early Saturday morning. In an email to CP24, police said officers responded to reports of a vehicle fire near Osler Street and Cariboo Avenue just after 1:30 a.m. and found two vehicles on fire.

Toronto Fire attended the scene and extinguished both fires. Police said the incident is being investigated as an arson and that the investigation remains ongoing. Police have not released the cause of the fire, the extent of the damage, or any suspect information.

The two vehicles caught fire at the same location in the early hours of Saturday. After firefighters put out the flames, police took over the investigation and classified the case as a suspected arson. As of Saturday morning, police had not released further details.

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2. Man seriously injured in early-morning North York shooting

A man has been taken to hospital with serious injuries following an early-morning shooting in North York, Toronto police say. In a post to social media, officials said emergency crews responded to the area of Milvan and Millwick Drive just after 4:30 a.m. for reports of a shooting. There, officers located an adult male suffering from a gunshot wound, who was transported to hospital with what were described at the time as non-life-threatening injuries.

Paramedics later told CP24 that those injuries were upgraded to "serious" and "potentially life-threatening." Police have not released a suspect description.

Road closures are in effect in the area as the investigation continues. As of Saturday morning, police had not released further details about the case.

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3. Nine days out, Bradford pledges police college expansion as Chow pushes back

Toronto mayoral candidate Brad Bradford says he would work with the province to establish a satellite campus of the Ontario Police College in Etobicoke as part of his pledge to hire 1,000 officers by the end of his first term. The announcement comes with nine days to go before Torontonians head to the polls.

Asked about the pledge at a separate engagement, fellow candidate Olivia Chow dismissed the proposal, saying Bradford "probably doesn't read the budget very much." "I should not laugh too hard," Chow said. "He would have known on safety, under my watch, we have hired more than a thousand police officers and mental health crisis workers. That's how you keep people safe." She added that it is not just about hiring police officers but also about mental health crisis workers, saying not everyone in trouble needs an officer to respond with a gun.

Bradford says the proposed campus would operate out of the existing college and would offer additional recruit classes beyond the province's current intake, helping address training capacity constraints. Citing his campaign's figures, he said the city has added roughly half a million residents since 2010 while maintaining approximately the same number of deployed officers. "We're not putting a man on the moon. We're putting police officers on the streets," he said.

His announcement came a day after Chow pledged the reopening of an east-end Toronto police station by 2030. Bradford's proposal would also see his administration negotiate additional seats for Toronto recruits at the Ontario Police College in Aylmer and introduce measures aimed at retaining experienced officers. The Toronto Police Service's five-year hiring plan, approved by the Toronto Police Services Board in December 2024, calls for roughly 502 net new officers by 2029; Bradford's campaign says his plan would more than double that target. The campaign estimates the plan would cost approximately $143 million annually once fully implemented in the fourth year of his term, based on the police service's 2026 budget figure of about $143,000 per officer, or roughly 10 per cent of the service's current $1.43-billion budget.

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4. Motorcyclist seriously injured in Scarborough crash

A motorcyclist has been rushed to hospital with serious injuries following a collision in Scarborough, Toronto police say. In a post to social media, officers said they responded to reports of a crash near Midland and Tara Avenue just before 11 p.m. The rider, an adult man, was transported to hospital with serious injuries, police said. Paramedics told CP24 that while the injuries are serious, they are not life-threatening.

Police said the driver of the other vehicle remained at the scene. Northbound Midland Avenue is closed at Tara Avenue as police investigate, and drivers are being advised to consider alternate routes.

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5. Winnipeg's chronic homelessness count may be 10 times lower than reported

Chronic homelessness is very visible in Winnipeg, but figures released in the spring may have greatly inflated the number of people living on the city's streets, riverbanks and in shelters. Based on a federal data source, End Homelessness Winnipeg previously reported that as of the end of March, about 4,400 people were experiencing chronic homelessness, and about 8,200 people who were accessing services had no stable housing. But CTV News has confirmed revised statistics show those numbers are closer to 436 and 2,200, respectively, a significant difference.

End Homelessness Winnipeg says it identified anomalies in the federal data system in July and August: files remained active despite extended periods in which a person had no contact with service providers. CTV News has reached out to the federal Homeless Individuals and Families Information System, and a media spokesperson says they are working on a response.

Premier Wab Kinew and Mayor Scott Gillingham both said they had already been told about the error. "We've known about this for a little while," Kinew said. "My understanding is that there was a glitch," Gillingham said. "I'm glad now that we have more accurate data."

In a statement, however, End Homelessness Winnipeg said the revised numbers are not necessarily accurate either, as they captured only a single day early in the "data-cleansing process." "They are not and have never been verified replacement figures, which is why they were not communicated publicly. At this time we do not have confidence in either the previously published figures or these preliminary numbers," the organization said. It said the 2024 Street Census is the most reliable data available; that report estimated 2,469 people were experiencing homelessness.

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6. Alberta's Monday referendum: 10 questions on immigration, the Constitution and separation

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is sending 10 questions to a provincewide referendum on Monday. According to CTV News, the questions cover immigration, constitutional reform, and whether Alberta should remain a province of Canada.

Question 1 asks whether voters support the government of Alberta taking increased control over immigration for the purposes of decreasing immigration to more sustainable levels, prioritizing economic migration and giving Albertans first priority on new employment opportunities. Smith has said she wants Alberta to have an accord similar to Quebec's, which lets the province set its own eligibility requirements for economic migrants. She said in February that a "normal" and "sustainable" level of immigration would represent less than one per cent of the population, or about 50,000 newcomers per year.

Question 2 asks whether voters support a law mandating that only Canadian citizens, permanent residents and individuals with an Alberta-approved immigration status will be eligible for provincially funded programs such as health care, education and other social services. Question 3 concerns a requirement that individuals with a non-permanent legal immigration status reside in Alberta for at least 12 months before qualifying for provincially funded social support programs. Question 4 asks whether Alberta should charge a reasonable fee or premium to individuals with a non-permanent immigration status for their and their family's use of the health care and education systems; Smith told Calgary business leaders on Sept. 22 that a health premium could be as much as $1,900.

Question 5 asks whether voters support a law requiring individuals to provide proof of citizenship, such as a passport, birth certificate or citizenship card, to vote in an Alberta provincial election. Questions 6 through 9 concern working with willing provinces to amend the Constitution — including having provincial governments, not the federal government, select justices appointed to provincial King's Bench and Appeal courts; abolishing the unelected federal Senate; allowing provinces to opt out of federal programs without losing associated federal funding; and giving provincial laws priority over federal laws when the two conflict.

Question 10 asks whether Alberta should remain a province of Canada, or whether the government should commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on separation. Smith has framed her other nine questions on immigration and constitutional reform as a political compromise that could address Alberta's grievances, gain leverage with Ottawa and avoid dismantling the country.

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7. Canada upsets England 24-21 in women's rugby, snapping 41-game unbeaten streak

Canada ended top-ranked England's 41-game unbeaten streak on Friday with a 24-21 victory in a WXV Global Series women's rugby match at BMO Field in Toronto. Shoshanah Semanutafa's try in the 77th minute was the difference; she raced down the wing and dived over the line to give Canada the late lead, and the host side held on for the win.

Savannah Bauder, Alysha Corrigan and Daleaka Menin had the other Canadian tries, while Maddie Feaunati, Zoe Harrison and Sarah Bern scored for England. A lively crowd of 18,621 braved chilly, damp conditions to set a new stand-alone attendance record for a women's rugby match in North America. The previous mark of 11,453 was set on Aug. 1, 2025, when Canada beat the United States 42-10 in a World Cup warm-up match in Ottawa.

Third-ranked Canada ended England's 39-game winning streak last month when the teams played to a 26-26 draw in Exeter. England, which beat Canada 33-13 in the World Cup final last year, hadn't lost since dropping a 34-31 decision to New Zealand in the 2022 World Cup final nearly four years ago. The teams will continue what organizers call the Rugby Rematch Tour on Oct. 23 in Ottawa. Before the game, Canada announced head coach Kevin Rouet had his contract extended through 2030, and second-row forward Tyson Beukeboom announced her retirement; she earned 84 caps for Canada over a 13-year international career and is the country's most-capped rugby player across both the men's and women's games.

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8. Redblacks end 22-game losing skid with 40-39 win over Argonauts

The Ottawa Redblacks beat the Toronto Argonauts 40-39 on Friday for their first win of the season, snapping a 22-game losing streak that dated back to last year. Rookie quarterback Bryson Barnes finished 27-for-37 for 339 yards and two touchdowns. "I don't think it's fully settled in yet," Barnes said. "I'm just grateful for the opportunity that I was able to have to go out with these guys." Ottawa went 406 days between wins.

The Redblacks (1-16) looked headed for another loss when the Argonauts (9-8) took a 39-33 lead with 30 seconds remaining. Barnes orchestrated a three-play drive that included him rushing for 21 yards and culminated with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Ayden Eberhardt; Paul Geelen's convert gave Ottawa the lead and the win with six seconds remaining. Eberhardt finished with two touchdowns on nine receptions for 101 yards, surpassing 1,000 receiving yards for the first time in his CFL career. "To be honest I'd say the win means more to me," he said.

For Toronto, quarterback Chad Kelly, returning after missing one game with a hand injury, had his night cut short when he was hauled down midway through the first quarter by Ottawa defensive end Luiji Vilain. Head coach Mike Miller had no real update other than that it was a lower body injury. Backup Nick Arbuckle finished 27-for-35 for 315 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. The Argonauts have clinched second in the East and will close out the regular season next Friday against the Montreal Alouettes. "We said this is a pro football team and in pro football anybody can beat anybody on any given day," Miller said.

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9. Jackson-Davis scores 23 as Raptors fall 129-125 to Pistons to end pre-season

Trayce Jackson-Davis led all scorers with 23 points — including 15 made free throws — but the Toronto Raptors fell to the Detroit Pistons 129-125 on Friday in the final pre-season game for both teams. Jackson-Davis also had three rebounds and a steal as Toronto (2-3) didn't put any of its top rotation players in the game.

Nimari Burnett had 17 points and five boards for the Raptors, while rookie Allen Gaves added nine points and pulled down eight rebounds. Cade Cunningham had 18 points and seven assists to lead Detroit (3-1), and Jalen Duren had 14 points and three rebounds. Both played limited minutes as the Pistons had 18 different players enter the game.

Toronto hosts the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday in its regular-season home opener.

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10. AI enters the chaotic world of online dating. User beware

AI is entering the world of online dating. Jack, a 38-year-old data science professional from San Francisco who asked to be referred to by a pseudonym over concerns about his upcoming visa renewal, has used ChatGPT as a sidekick for nearly a year, from choosing outfits to learning guitar. "Give me a fun short writeup of who I am for a dating app," he typed, then pasted the result into Hinge. He admits to a single-digit batting average on Hinge, and his AI wingman didn't improve his stats.

More than half of U.S. adults under 30 have used a dating app, according to Pew Research Center, and AI is now an easily accessible tool for cutting through the chaos of endless swiping. Bumble is ditching the swipe for AI-driven matchmaking, Grindr is piloting bot-to-bot conversations to vet human dates, and Hinge is integrating AI to help with profile creation and conversation starters. "If your end goal is to get offline and meet the love of your life, you probably want any tool that's going to help you do that," said Jui Ramaprasad, a professor of information systems at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Others say it just adds another layer of technology. "From my vantage point, all I'm seeing is, okay, it's still algorithms matching, but humans have less agency over that process," said Douglas Zytko, a computer science professor at the University of Michigan-Flint. He also raised concerns about whether AI-generated content that misleads someone could affect informed consent to intimacy.

Not everyone fails. Mihir Manohar, 32, of New York, spent about an hour answering a long questionnaire on the AI-driven dating app Amata, whose chatbot pitched him a match: his now-girlfriend, Casey. They met at a wine bar and have been together for 10 months. Amata founder Ludovic Hureaux said that if AI can help reconnect people in real life, it is very positive, but if it increases time spent online and worsens the loneliness crisis, it will have failed.

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