TORONTO, Ont. – The Toronto Police Service (TPS) announced on Oct. 7 that it had arrested and charged three young men accused of involvement in eight violent robberies (as well as carjacking and property thefts) in the Greater Toronto Area, two of which were robberies of retail businesses. According to a TPS press release, the incidents took place in the period from Sept. 18 to Oct. 3. The release did not specify the individual incidents, but stated that the perpetrators had carried weapons and exerted physical force and threats. Multiple victims of the incidents had suffered a variety of injuries, police added. On Oct. 4, TPS officers arrested 22-year-old John Cruz Barros and 18-year-old Cassidy Field; both are facing numerous charges including eight counts each of robbery, two each of assault resulting in bodily harm, one each of weapon possession and one each of assault. Barros and Field both made their first court appearances the morning after their arrest. On Oct. 7, police arrested a third suspect, 18-year-old Aekwon Murray, and charged him with robbery and disguise with intent. The investigation had been conducted by the TPS holdup and 12 Division major-crime units, police said.