A 30-year-old man is dead after being shot at “multiple times” by Toronto police outside a North York hotel during the Thursday lunch hour.

The province’s police watchdog, the Special Investigations Unit, is investigating the 30-year-old man’s death. (The SIU is called in whenever police are involved in a shooting.)

Officers were responding to reports of a man in a car armed with a gun and a knife outside a Best Western hotel at Finch Avenue West and Norfinch Drive, Toronto police said.

“As an officer exited his cruiser, the man also exited his vehicle,” the SIU said in a statement released Thursday evening. “There was an interaction and the officer discharged his firearm multiple times, resulting in the man being struck.”

The man died at the scene.

“At this time, four investigators and three forensic investigators have been assigned to the case. One subject officer and three witness officers have been designated,” the report said.

A post-mortem is scheduled to be conducted tomorrow morning in Toronto.

The incident took place near Toronto police 31 Division, at 40 Norfinch Dr.

Nick Hrousalas, manager of the Best Western at 50 Norfinch Dr., said the altercation between police and a man driving a car happened outside the hotel.

“They confronted him in front of the parking lot,” he said.

Hrousalas didn’t see the interaction or any exchange of fire — “it happened so quick,” he said — but knew something was wrong when he saw ambulances arrive and police running over from division down the street.

“We saw everybody run out. We were like, ‘what’s going on?’”

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With files from Wendy Gillis

Margaryta Ignatenko is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @MargarytaIgnat1

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