Shocking video shows gun being pointed and fired at movie theatre in Richmond Hill, Ontario - Toronto

Shocking video shows the moment shots were fired inside a movie theater in Richmond Hill, marking the fourth such incident since mid-May.

York Regional Police said officers were called to a movie theatre in the area of East Beaver Creek and Highway 7 around 3:15 a.m. Saturday after someone fired a gun at the front entrance.

Police released video showing the incident, in which a blue sedan pulls up outside and a suspect fires shots from the back seat of the car. The theater was closed at the time and no one was injured.

“Officers attended and observed that some of the windows and doors of the York Theatre premises had been destroyed by bullets,” Detective Sergeant Jason Dinsmore told Global News in an interview.

Investigators noted that this is the fourth shooting at the theater since May 17, with a different suspect vehicle used in each incident.

The story continues below the advertisement

On May 17, 19 and 24, shots were fired toward the theater from the suspect vehicles. Investigators also released videos of these incidents.

Police had previously said no one was injured.

Dinsmore said the vehicles used in the shootings were all stolen.

2:25
Suspects wanted in three shootings at same Richmond Hill movie theater

In January, another shooting took place at the same theatre, and police said at the time that the incident was linked to similar incidents that happened the same night at theatres across the Greater Toronto Area.

The email you need to know the day’s top news in Canada and around the world.

Dinsmore said two arrests have been made in the case: one person remains in custody, while the other is out on bail.

Despite the similarities, the four recent shootings at the Richmond Hill theatre are currently believed to be unrelated to what happened in January, Dinsmore said.

The story continues below the advertisement

“At this time, we do not believe these incidents are related,” Dinsmore said.

“But as any investigation unfolds, we never close any avenues and always remain open to any information we uncover.”

An Ontario film distributor has alleged that the January shootings were linked to a campaign of intimidation by other film distributors over popular South Indian films.

York Cinemas bills itself as a “multicultural cinema”, offering “the latest Tamil, Hindi, Telugu and Malayalam films”.

“We believe that the motivations that led to what happened in January and what is happening now are, at this point, two different motivations,” Dinsmore said.

“That matter is still before the courts, so I’m not going to comment on the direct motive behind it, other than we believe that what’s happened here in Richmond Hill over the last month or so may be a separate matter,” he added later.

In the interview, Dinsmore said there were “certainly similarities” to a series of shootings this weekend in Toronto that Toronto police have said were linked to the tow truck industry. But Dinsmore said there is no connection at this time to what happened at the Richmond Hill theatre.

He was asked whether violence involving the tow truck industry could be linked to the incidents at the theater.

The story continues below the advertisement

“I’ve seen the comments that have been posted by Toronto police and York Regional Police, and at this point I can’t say that the shootings that we’ve had in Richmond Hill are related to the tow truck industry,” Dinsmore said.

“But, as I mentioned earlier, we are still looking at the motives and reasons why these criminal acts occur.”

There has been a significant increase in police presence outside the York Cinema and CCTV has been installed throughout. The cinema remains open.

Officers are appealing for anyone with information who has not yet spoken to police or anyone with video footage from the area to come forward.

— With documents from Catherine McDonald and The Canadian Press