Hamilton police seize gun at festival, search for suspects in assault and shootings

Hamilton police say they arrested a man allegedly carrying a gun and a high-capacity magazine at a local festival and are searching for suspects who later used a baseball bat to attack a man in a nearby parking lot.

Police say those two cases at or near the Winona Peach Festival on Saturday night came before two other separate shootings at a bar and a club, in what police characterized as overnight violence in the city.

Police say a “disturbance” broke out between two men at the festival and bystanders told officers one of them was armed.

They say the officers, who then arrested the 23-year-old allegedly carrying a gun, high-capacity magazine and ammunition, “prevented what could have been a significant tragedy.”

About an hour later, at 10:30, police say officers were called to a parking lot near the festival where a 53-year-old man was allegedly being attacked by four males with a baseball bat who fled the scene.

Police say two people were injured in a shooting outside a bar later that night, and then early Sunday morning three people were injured in a second shooting outside a club.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 25, 2024.

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