According to court documents, the alleged plot to harm a jail official that sparked the police corruption and organized crime investigation known as Project South was orchestrated by suspects who used fake names on an encrypted messaging platform.
Before the purported attempted attack, the suspects reportedly utilized the Signal app to exchange personal details and images of the intended victim, a high-ranking corrections officer at Toronto South Detention Centre whose identity is shielded by a publication ban.
These claims are outlined in a legal document submitted by Crown prosecutors in Ontario Superior Court last month. Drawing from conversations found on confiscated cellphones, the filing portrays how an alleged network involved in hiring hitmen is said to be responsible for the purported assassination attempt.
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The investigation into Project South commenced in June 2025 after York Regional Police thwarted the alleged murder attempt when the suspects’ vehicle collided with a police car stationed near the official’s residence.
Initially, close to 30 individuals were charged in Project South, including seven Toronto police officers and one retired constable. One officer, now retired, pleaded guilty last month, while a civilian’s charge was dropped.
‘Hit Squad Needed’
On June 16, 2025, four days before authorities foiled the alleged murder plan, Dequon Lemonious, purportedly known as “Danny Phantom” on Signal, allegedly informed Median Jackson, using the alias “Lebron James,” of the need to verify the presence of a vehicle at an address.