Toronto police have charged a teenager with second-degree homicide in the tragic death of high-stakes online poker player Matthew Bergart. The 16-year-old suspect, whose identity is protected due to his status as a minor, was apprehended following a dramatic shootout at a recording studio on Monday night.
Bergart, a 30-year-old poker pro and musician, was shot dead in the early hours of April 25, 2024, during a targeted home invasion in Toronto’s Etobicoke district. According to police, three suspects wearing dark clothing and balaclavas broke into the home demanding valuables before shooting Bergart multiple times. While Bergart was not the intended target, he was visiting a friend whose home was the focus of the heist.
Detective Sergeant Brandon Price explained the tragic circumstances, stating, “This is a situation where there was a bad decision to do a break and enter, and that was compounded and turned into a murder. We were fortuitous that [the suspect] was caught up in this [shootout] so that he could be taken off of the streets.”
The arrest unfolded when plainclothes officers investigated a recording studio for a man wanted in connection with a robbery. During their stakeout, a stolen car arrived in the adjacent FreshCo supermarket parking lot, and three men exited and began firing at the studio, where a birthday party was underway. Those inside the studio returned fire, leading to an intense exchange of over 100 bullets. Remarkably, no one was killed or injured, although bullets struck an unmarked police vehicle.
Following the chaos, police boxed in the stolen car, capturing one suspect after a foot chase while the two others escaped. Inside the recording studio, officers arrested an additional 21 people, charging eight with various offenses, including unauthorized possession of a firearm.
Staff Sergeant Joe Matthews expressed his concern about the involvement of young people in such serious criminal activities, commenting, “It should alarm all of us that the young people we took into custody are already heavily involved in serious activity and armed with high-powered firearms.”
The poker community mourns Bergart’s loss, remembering him as a “fearless” player who competed against some of the world’s best in high-stakes online games. Although he rarely participated in live tournaments, Bergart’s skills and unique genius in both poker and music were well-respected. A GoFundMe page set up to support his family describes him as a musician who “dared to dream and create with a unique genius in both his music and his work.”
