2 Toronto men charged with murder, robbery of Zaher Noureddine outside restaurant

Two men have been arrested and charged with second-degree murder in the killing of a 25-year-old man during a violent robbery outside a restaurant on Yonge Street at Lola Road last December.

• Hip-hop community mourns after killing of Zaher Noureddine, Toronto music journalist

• Zaher Noureddine, 25, dead after 'brazen robbery' outside midtown restaurant

​Zaher Noureddine, 25, a Torontonian originally from Ottawa, was killed in the attack outside the St. Louis Bar and Grill at 2050 Yonge St., just south of Eglinton Avenue on Dec. 30. 

Noureddine was leaving a nearby bar at the time when an altercation took place between a group of men and another group with Noureddine. 

A 29-year-old man and a 26-year-old man were arrested on Wednesday. Both men are from Toronto and are now facing the following charges:

• Robbery.
• Second degree murder.

Police say a third man is in custody "on other matters" but has not been charged yet.

Back in December police said they were searching for three suspects wearing dark-coloured clothing and who fled the area in a light-coloured four-door sedan. 

"I believe it was a very brazen robbery," homicide Det. Jeff Allington told reporters near the crime scene at the time.

Allington added that while the incident was random, it appeared Noureddine was selected by the attackers over others walking in the area.

"I would certainly say he was targeted and the people who robbed him chose him," Allington said.

The 25-year-old victim was taken to the Sunnybrook trauma centre, where he later died.

Noureddine studied journalism at Algonquin College in Ottawa, where he grew up. After graduating he moved to Toronto and worked as a music journalist and photographer active in the hip-hop community.