Local reaction from a Hamilton Imam after worshippers were shot in Toronto shortly after their Ramadan prayers

Toronto police are investigating the motive behind an early morning drive-by shooting that injured five men in Scarborough yesterday who had just left prayers at a nearby mosque.

Toronto police say it happened around 1 AM near Markam Road and Lawrence Avenue east.

Five men who had just finished their evening Ramadan prayers had been congregating in a parking lot outside Cedar Heights Plaza deciding where to get dinner.

Toronto police media relations officer David Hopkinson says officers were informed that the group had been shot at from someone driving by in a car. The car then took off northbound on Markam Road. Five men suffered gunshot wounds and were in hospital for serious injuries. They are expected to survive. All of them are between 28 to 35 years old and are said to be family men.

Hopkinson says the hate crimes unit was notified, but that it’s too early to establish a motive.

The Imam of the Hamilton Mountain Mosque says he’s is worried and members of the Muslim community have also raised concerns.

Sayed Torra says he trusts that police will find the attackers and bring them to justice. He also wants to see all levels of government increase security for places of worship.

This comes after the head of a Mosque in Mississauga alleges that a man who attacked worshippers last month yelled that he was there to “kill terrorists.” Witnesses say about 20 men tackled the man, who wielded an axe in his hand and held him until police arrived. 24-year-old Mohammad Moiz Omar of Mississauga is facing several charges.

Today, CHCH News spoke to the brother of one of the victims of the drive-by shooting yesterday. He lives in Hamilton and says his brother is recovering but his family is traumatized.