Bungling Toronto cops doubled down on their decision to let a mansion invasion suspect roam free despite realizing he was likely the culprit.
Police Chief Myron Demkiw assured residents on Monday that 'there's been no failure' in the investigation following the attack, after suspect Daijohn Richards, 23, visited a hospital with a gunshot wound shortly after the incident but wasn't arrested.
Police responded to a violent incident unfolding at a lavish residence near Hyde Park Circle and Post Road on Thursday, when three suspects, armed with handguns and a hammer, forced their way into the multi-million dollar home.
According to police, the suspects demanded valuables before savagely attacking four adults, a 75-year-old David Morton, 64-year-old Doriana Zohil-Morton and their daughters, aged 26 and 28.
Richards later attended St. Joseph's Health Centre with a gaping shoulder wound. Police believe he was inadvertently shot by an accomplice, yet he was not detained.
He remains at large, now wanted on a Canada-wide warrant on four counts of discharging a firearm with intent to wound, four counts of robbery with a firearm, three counts of aggravated assault, break and enter commit/dwelling-house, possessing a prohibited device and disguise with intent.
The other two suspects have not been identified.
Inspector Kristy Smith said at a news conference Saturday officers interacted with Richards on Thursday, but they did not have enough information at the time to arrest him before he was released from the hospital later that morning.
Toronto police are facing mounting questions over how a suspected gunman was allowed to walk out of hospital and remain free after officers encountered him with a gunshot wound just hours after a brutal home invasion that left an entire family injured
Despite subsequently identifying 23-year-old Daijohn Richards as a suspect in the attack, police are standing by their decision not to arrest him when he presented at St. Joseph's Health Centre with a serious shoulder wound shortly after the invasion. He is now wanted on a Canada-wide warrant
The attack unfolded on Thursday at a residence near Hyde Park Circle and Post Road, where three armed intruders allegedly forced their way into the property carrying handguns and a hammer
The suspects demanded valuables before launching a savage assault on the four adults inside: 75-year-old CEO David Morton, his 64-year-old wife, Doriana Zohil-Morton, and their two daughters, aged 26 and 28. Morton, the 75-year-old CEO of THE MAC Group, remains in hospital alongside his two daughters, Maggie Zohil-Morton ,26, and her sister Cristina Zohil-Morton aged, 28
Police Chief Demkiw backed up Smith's statement on Monday reiterating that police had no evidence to suggest one of the suspects had been shot at the scene of the home invasion.
'We were very, very clear: we are following the evidence as it becomes available,' he said. 'Had there been evidence to allow us to do something different, that's what would have happened.'
But the chief's assurances are unlikely to silence questions about how a man who police now believe was involved in such a violent attack was able to leave hospital without being detained.
Demkiw said he understood the public's concern considering the 'brazen, terrible nature' of the incident, especially as people expect their homes to be a safe place.
'It does rock our sense of safety and security when our homes are violated,' he said. 'I can assure Torontonians that there will be no resource spared and no stone left unturned.'
'Some of the work that has to happen does take time and these things don't always line up perfectly for us the way we would like or the way they sometimes appear on TV,' Demkiw added. 'The nature of what's unfolding continues to be very, very dynamic and very, very active.'
He also swatted away any suggestions of incompetency, singing the praises of investigators working the case as 'the best in the business.'
'Had I been a victim of this horrible set of circumstances, these are precisely the people I would want chasing and apprehending the offenders and bringing them to justice,' he said before adding, 'I have complete confidence in their abilities.'
In the hours following the invasion, Richards turned up at St. Joseph's Health Centre with a gaping wound to his shoulder. Investigators believe he may have been accidentally shot by one of his accomplices during the attack. Yet despite the suspicious circumstances surrounding his injury, Richards was not taken into custody and was released from hospital later that morning
Morton, the 75-year-old CEO of THE MAC Group, remains in hospital alongside his two daughters (pictured), Maggie Zohil-Morton,26, and her sister Cristina Zohil-Morton aged, 28
Demkiw said he understood the public's alarm, acknowledging that the 'brazen, terrible nature' of the invasion had shaken residents' confidence in the safety of their own homes
Meanwhile, the family is left dealing with the physical and emotional aftermath of an attack that transformed their home into the scene of a terrifying ordeal.
David Morton, 75, CEO of THE MAC Group, remains in hospital along with his two daughters.
Morton's wife, Doriana Zohil-Morton, was also struck with a hammer, but was the sole occupant who wasn't shot. She has since been released from the hospital.
David Morton released an evocative statement on behalf of the family on Friday.
'What should have been the safety and security of our own home became a terrifying and life-threatening experience,' he wrote.
'During the attack, three members of our family were shot and are currently recovering in hospital. All four members of our family were also attacked with a hammer, leaving everyone injured and requiring emergency medical attention.'
'It is difficult to put into words the trauma of experiencing something so horrific in the one place where everyone should feel safest: their own home.'
The Daily Mail has reached out to the Morton family and the Toronto Police Department for comment.
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