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Improvised explosive device injures 15 at Mississauga restaurant

Police are seeking two men they said entered Bombay Bhel restaurant with their faces covered, dropped an IED, and fled.
Photo of suspects in explosion provided by Peel Regional Police. 

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Police are looking for two men after an explosion in an Indian restaurant in Mississauga injured 15 people late on Thursday night. The motive remains unknown.

Three people, including a 35-year-old man from Brampton and two women from Mississauga, aged 62 and 48, were rushed to a Toronto hospital with critical injuries, but paramedics say they’re now in stable condition. The other victims’ ages range from 23 to 69.

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Two birthday parties were happening at Bombay Bhel restaurant when two men entered, dropped an IED and fled, according to Sgt. Matt Bertram. Police received a call about the explosion around 10:30 p.m.

Rafael Concaceicao, a student, was on the patio of a restaurant close by when the bomb exploded. “There was a child's birthday party. Everything was destroyed. Lots of blood in the floor. Many people were screaming,” he told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. “They were trying to run out from the restaurant. There was a guy with glass inside his eyes. Many people were bleeding so much.”

"There's no indication that that is a terrorist act, no indication that it's a hate crime. At this time, we haven't ruled anything out as we start our investigation."

“Every police resource is being used right now to locate the people responsible for this horrendous act,” Peel Police Chief Jennifer Evans told reporters on Friday morning. Police across the GTA have been notified and are looking for the suspects, who are still on the loose.

The first is described as a man in his mid-20s, 5’10” to 6 ft with a stocky build, wearing dark blue jeans, a dark zip-up hoodie pulled over his head, a baseball cap with a light grey peak. His face was covered with a black cloth.

The second man was 5’9” to 5’10” with fair skin and a thin build. He was wearing faded blue jeans, a dark zip-up hoodie with the hood pulled over his head, a grey T-shirt, and dark-coloured skate shoes. His face was also covered. Bertram told reporters the attackers didn’t say anything, but just “went in, dropped off this device, and took off right away.”

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"There's no indication that that is a terrorist act, no indication that it's a hate crime," said Chief Evans, adding also that "at this time, we haven't ruled anything out as we start our investigation."

Police are still in the process of obtaining warrants, so they have not yet started the investigation inside the building. But they've cleared the scene and ensured there aren't any other explosive devices in the premises.

“This is not the Mississauga I know,” said Mississauga mayor Bonnie Crombie, calling the bombing a “heinous act.”

“The people who have done this need to answer for their crimes and be brought to justice," she said. Other leaders have expressed their support, including Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, and India's Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj.