A 20-year-old man has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the 2023 fatal shooting at Pickering Casino Resort, Durham Regional Police said.
The accused was arrested in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, and returned to Durham Region by the DRPS homicide unit. He is described by police as a male of no fixed address.
Police were called to the casino at 888 Durham Live Avenue shortly after 5 a.m. on Monday, October 9, 2023, after reports of an armed person at the resort. Officers found the victim suffering from gunshot wounds. He was rushed to a Toronto-area trauma centre, where he later died.
The victim was identified as 34-year-old Michael Ferdinand.
Because the suspect was 17 years old at the time of the shooting, he cannot be named. His identity was released publicly in November 2023 under a special judicial authorization granted through the Youth Criminal Justice Act. A second authorization in December 2025 allowed his name and photo to be published again, but all identifying material was required to be removed by media and police agencies within five days of that order.
Investigators identified the suspect as a teenager shortly after the shooting and obtained a Canada-wide warrant for his arrest. The search that followed spanned multiple police services and jurisdictions across the country.
DRPS credited several agencies with helping bring the case to an arrest, including the Calgary Police Service, the Saskatoon Police Service, the Vancouver Police Department and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Police are still asking anyone with information about the case to come forward. Det. Hollister of the homicide unit can be reached at 1-888-579-1520, extension 5415.
Anonymous tips can be submitted to Durham Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at durhamregionalcrimestoppers.ca, and tipsters may be eligible for a cash reward.
Police noted the information in their release comes from an ongoing investigation, and the allegations against the accused have not yet been proven in court.
