Shooting of 10-year-old boy leaves Toronto's east end in shock

Police officers are still stationed near an east-end apartment complex where a 10-year-old boy was hurt after a volley of bullets tore through a window.

Mohammed Arif, the boy's father, said there were 13 bullet holes in his Blake Street apartment after the incident, which took place on Friday evening.

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Arif said his son was on the couch watching television with his mother when the gunshots slammed through a window and wall. He was hit in the shoulder and rushed to hospital, where he spent the weekend recovering.

Arif, speaking to CBC News through a translator on Monday, said he's still in shock.

Many in the community feel the same way. One neighbour, who declined to give her name but said she knows the family, said this kind of incident hasn't happened in the area in years. She said she doesn't think the shooting was targeting the Arif family, but instead was a mistake.

This weekend, police said they are taking the shooting seriously, regardless of what motivated it.

"It's extremely concerning if they were targeted or not targeted," said Sgt.Andy Kitchener.

Two Toronto police cruisers were stationed near Boultbee and Jones avenues, outside a community housing complex there today.

'School is safe,' principal says

At Blake Street Junior Public School, near the scene of Friday's shooting, two social workers were on hand to reassure students that they're safe in school and are free to share any fears or feelings about the shooting.

Kiki Karailiadis, the school's principal, said this is the first time she can remember a young child being shot in the eight years she's been in the neighbourhood.

"I just want my kids to know that this school is safe," Karailiadis said.

Mayor John Tory, meanwhile, said the shooting and other violence this weekend underscores the need to crack down on gang activity.

"Who goes around shooting bullets into a house in the east end?" Tory told reporters at a Monday morning event. "The answer is: not people who have anything to do with the way we live in this city."

Tory urged anyone who has information about the incident to contact police.