Charge withdrawn against rapper accused in Elnaz Hajtamiri abduction

Article content

A kidnapping charge against a Toronto rapper for his suspected involvement in the abduction of a woman in Wasaga Beach nearly four years ago has been dropped – for now.

Article content

Deshawn Davis, 38, was alleged to have been among three men who posed as police officers and snatched Elnaz Hajtamiri from a home on Jan. 12, 2022.

Article content

Article content

Hajtamiri, who was 37 at the time, had taken refuge in Wasaga Beach weeks earlier because she feared for her life after being attacked by two men armed with a frying pan in her Richmond Hill parking garage.

No one has seen or heard from Hajtamiri since her abduction and police believe she is dead.

Davis, aka Thorobread, is currently locked up in the United States on first-degree murder and attempted murder charges stemming from a deadly gang-related shooting at GALA nightclub in Miami Beach, Fla.

Lowell “Lo” Grissom, a Miami rapper and talent scout for Chris Brown Entertainment, was killed and two women were injured in that shooting on May 7, 2023.

Article content

Article content

Davis – who had been named on Most Wanted lists on both sides of the border – was ultimately arrested in California in August.

The Crown cited his incarceration and pending trial in the U.S. as the reason for withdrawing his kidnapping charge during a hearing in a Collingwood courtroom earlier this month, CTV News reports.

However, the Crown also reportedly said it “reserves the right to recommence proceedings” against Davis “should circumstances change.”

RECOMMENDED VIDEO

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

Play Video

Numerous people have been charged in connection with Hajtamiri’s assault in Richmond Hill in December 2021 and her abduction from Wasaga Beach weeks later.

Harshdeep Binner and Riyasat Singh have pleaded guilty to the assault and both have been sentenced.

Article content

Mohamad Lilo, Hajtamiri’s ex-boyfriend – believed to be the mastermind behind the frying pan attack and the kidnapping – was found guilty of aggravated assault in June.

He’s scheduled to be sentenced early in 2026 and is then expected to stand trial for Hajtamiri’s murder in the spring.

Charges against others – Jaspreet Singh, Akash Rana, Harshpreet Sekhon, Krystal P. Lawrence and Dominique Ewan – have been stayed by the Crown.

And charges against Adams Ankamah have been withdrawn by the Crown.

Sukhpreet Singh, of Mississauga, was taken into custody in June by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in San Antonio, Tx. and extradited to Ontario last month.

The 25-year-old faces charges of aggravated assault and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence for the assault in Richmond Hill.

Singh remains in custody awaiting his next court appearance.

cdoucette@postmedia.com

@sundoucette

Article content