Court documents reveal that suspects involved in the organized crime case Project South, which exposed police corruption, planned an alleged hit on a jail official by utilizing fake identities on an encrypted messaging platform.
In the days leading up to the purported attempted murder, the accused individuals reportedly communicated via the Signal app, sharing personal details and photos of the targeted senior corrections officer at Toronto South Detention Centre, whose identity is shielded by a publication ban.
These claims are outlined in a factum submitted by Crown prosecutors in Ontario Superior Court last month. According to the document, conversations extracted from confiscated cellphones suggest the involvement of an alleged gun-for-hire network in the planned attack.
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The investigation into Project South commenced in June 2025 following the interception of the alleged hit by the York Regional Police, who stopped the suspect vehicle after it collided with a police car stationed near the jail official’s residence.
Initially, almost 30 individuals were charged under Project South, including seven Toronto police officers and one retired constable. One officer, now retired, pleaded guilty last month, while another individual’s charge was dropped.
‘Need the hit squad’
On June 16, 2025, Dequon Lemonious, identified by prosecutors as “Danny Phantom” on Signal, allegedly contacted Median Jackson, known as “Lebron James,” expressing the need for someone to scout an address to confirm the presence of a specific vehicle.
