Karnataka origin man shot dead in Canada

A 37-year-old Indian-Canadian died after being shot by unidentified men in the parking lot of a busy shopping centre in Toronto, Canada on Saturday (February 7, 2026).

In a statement on February 8, the Toronto Police Service identified the victim as Chandan Kumar Raja Nandakumar of Brampton.

On Saturday, at approximately 3.31 p.m., the police responded to a call for a shooting in the parking lot of Woodbine Shopping Centre located at Rexdale Boulevard and Highway 27, the statement said.

It said police officers found a man with gunshot wounds when they arrived at the scene. The victim was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.

The suspect, or suspects, fled the scene in a vehicle and the victim succumbed to his injuries at the hospital, the police said.

Mr. Chandan Kumar, originally from Tyamagondlu, Nelamangala taluk, Bengaluru Rural district of Karnataka, was an Information Technology professional.

The circumstances surrounding the shooting are not known, but officers believe it was a “targeted” incident.

Son of retired teacher

Mr. Chandan Kumar, the only son of retired teacher Nandakumar and Shailaja, a resident of Tyamagondlu, had been living in Toronto, Canada, for the past seven years and he was working at LTIMidtree.

Mr. Chandan Kumar was working with ‘Toronto Kannada Sangha’ and in the Shirdi Sai Baba Temple Trust in Canada. Through the Kannada Sangha, he was successful in organising programmes by inviting famous singers and artists from Karnataka.

Mourning in Tyamagondulu

The Canadian police informed the family about the murder of Mr. Chandan Kumar at 10 p.m. on Sunday night through a phone call. Mr. Chandan Kumar’s parents have appealed to the authorities to bring back their son’s body.

‘Painful news’

Reacting to the news, Home Minister G. Parameshwara said on ‘X,’ “The news of the killing of Chandan Kumar in a shooting attack in Toronto, Canada, is deeply painful.”

He added that the cooperation of the Union Ministry of External Affairs had been sought through the State Police Department to bring Mr. Chandan Kumar’s mortal remains to India as soon as possible. “I have instructed the officials to provide assistance to the grieving family living in Karnataka,” he added.

Urging the Canadian government through the Union Ministry of External Affairs to conduct a proper investigation into the murder of Mr. Chandan Kumar and provide justice, he said, “Kannadigas living in Canada should not be worried about this incident. The Karnataka government is committed to the safety of all Kannadigas.”

MP for Chickballapur K. Sudhakar also expressed his condolences.

“It is a very shocking and saddening thing for all of us that Chandan Kumar, a resident of Tyamgondlu village in Nelamangala taluk, a native of Karnataka, who was an IT employee living in Toronto, Canada, was killed in a shooting on Saturday. I express my condolences to the father, mother and family members of the deceased and am making every effort to bring his body to India as soon as possible with the cooperation of the Union Ministry of External Affairs,” said in his social media platform ‘X.’

(With inputs from PTI)