Moka café killings suspect makes court appearance
Jason Hay, the accused killer in the deadly Moka café shooting, made a brief video appearance in a Newmarket court today.
Hay and Tashari Bennett, a woman he was travelling with, were arrested in a "high-risk" takedown on Highway 400 near Barrie, Ont., on Friday afternoon. York Regional Police Const. Andy Pattenden said the arrest involved heavily armed officers descending on the suspects from unmarked vehicles.
Police said Hay, 27, of Mississauga, Ont., had been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder in connection with the June 24 shooting at the café in Vaughan, north of Toronto.
Christopher de Simone, 24, a regular Moka patron, and Maria Voci, 47, who worked at the eatery, were killed in the shooting. Two others were seriously wounded, but survived.
Bennett, 25, was charged with being an accessory after the fact and breaching recognizance.
CBC News' Neil Herland reported that Hay had a sullen expression and said, "I did nothing wrong." His father, who was in the courthouse, told Herland that his son was not responsible for the killings and is not the person captured by security camera outside the café.
Hay and Bennett are scheduled to return to court Aug. 24.
