Police release new details in Kitchener cemetery shooting

Those who frequently walk through the Woodland Cemetery in Kitchener said they were shocked to learn of a police investigation into a shooting that happened early Tuesday morning.

Police responded to reports of an injured man in the area of King Street East and Fairway Road South around 6:30 a.m. Tuesday.

On Thursday night, police released new details about the shooting, including the investigation has been taken over by the Waterloo Regional Police’s Robbery Team and more details about the shooting suspect.

Police believe the incident as a targeted shooting. They say they’re looking for a suspect described as a tall white man with a thin build.

Police said the suspect shot a man around 5:40 a.m. at Woodland Cemetery.

“What I can say right now is the males met at Woodlawn Cemetery at approximately 5:40 am and engaged in an interaction which resulted in the victim sustaining a gunshot wound to the leg,” said Const. Melissa Quarrie with the Waterloo regional police.

Officials said the man was transferred to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Nearby resident Stacy Katic said she’s walked her dogs through the cemetery each day for more than 30 years, and she has never heard of similar incidents happening in the area.

“The shooting was very unsettling, and to tell you the truth, it’s scary,” Katic told CTV News. “You really don’t hear anything terrible happening here.”

Katic said she knows a lot of people who walk through the cemetery grounds, and some live on the same street as her.

“They’re neighbours that are walking through here daily. You just wouldn’t think of anything terrible happening,” Katic said.

Heather Hupp and Cathy Herzog said they were visiting relatives at the cemetery only a few hours after the shooting happened.

“We came here about [11 a.m.]. Herzog told CTV News. “We had no idea that it happened, so it is unsettling that something like that would happen in Kitchener number one and two in a cemetery.”

Katic said she hopes the investigation can come to a swift conclusion.

“I hope that the police are able to find the person that did this, figure out what the reasoning is for it. I would like to know where they got the guns and if there’s any more out there,” Katic said. “It would be nice to have that tainted image of this incident kind of painted over and cleaned up.”