Gunpoint carjacking in Ajax sparks search for four suspects

Four suspects are at large after a man was carjacked at gunpoint in Pickering.

A was man sitting in his car in his drive near Williamson Drive East and Gillett Drive, a residential area in northern Ajax, on April 9. According to Durham Police, shortly before 10 p.m, the group approached the car.

One of the quartet pulled a gun on the man and demanded he get out of the car. All four men then piled in the vehicle and drove off. The victim was not physically hurt. He called Durham Police to report the theft.

Later, officers on patrol spotted the car on Highway 401. They tracked the car for some time, until it exited the highway in Pickering. However, the car quickly pulled into a plaza and all four suspects ran from the vehicle, evading capture.

Investigators have seized the car for examination. The only description police have provided of the suspects is that they were all men wearing dark clothes.

Incidents like this have become increasingly common across the GTA, prompting the formation of an Ontario-wide carjacking task force last September. The force includes the OPP, York Regional Police, Halton Regional Police Service, Durham Regional Police Service, Peel Regional Police and other external agencies, including the Criminal Intelligence Service of Ontario.

By January, the task force had laid 554 charges against 89 people. However, rates of auto theft remain high. So far this year, Durham Police have responded to nearly 300 calls regarding stolen cars, per their crime map.