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A 28-year-old man faces quite a few prices for a sequence of allegedly hate-motivated assaults, together with an assault at a downtown mosque.
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Toronto Police say officers responded to an assault with a weapon on the Toronto Islamic Centre on Yonge St., south of Davenport Rd., round 6:40 a.m. on Saturday.
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A person allegedly approached the mosque and “turned confrontational” in direction of a number of individuals who had been standing exterior, police mentioned in a press release launched Saturday night.
“The (man) threw a rock on the victims and yelled derogatory slurs,” she alleged. “He then brandished a motorbike chain and have become extraordinarily aggressive in direction of the victims.”
Police say one particular person suffered minor accidents.
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Investigators subsequently linked the mosque assault to 2 different assaults that allegedly occurred hours aside Wednesday morning.
Within the first incident, cops allege a person was driving a cab close to Entrance and Yonge Sts. round 4:25 a.m.
The cabbie opened the window of his car and requested a person if he wanted a experience.
The person requested the taxi driver if he was Muslim, then sprayed the cabbie within the face with an unknown substance, police allege.
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Within the second incident, which occurred simply earlier than 8 a.m., a lady carrying a hijab was strolling on a biking and pedestrian path within the space of Fort York Blvd. and Spadina Ave. when a person approached her.
The person made “derogatory statements” towards the girl, then sprayed her within the face with an unknown substance and fled the scene, police allege.
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The girl was transported to hospital and handled for minor accidents.
Hate Crime Unit investigators subsequently recognized a suspect.
Chandler Marshall, of Toronto, has been charged with 4 counts of assault with a weapon, two counts of assault, two counts of carrying a hid weapon, two counts of mischief, two counts of administering a noxious substance, two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon, two counts of weapons harmful, and uttering threats.
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Late Saturday afternoon, mosque leaders launched in a press release saying: “We won’t be intimidated.”
“This isn’t the primary time that (Toronto Islamic Centre) has confronted Islamophobia,” the statements says. “We beforehand acquired threats that somebody was coming to commit one other Christchurch assault at our centre.”
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Whereas the Toronto Islamic Centre mentioned their first precedence is to make sure the continuing security of worshippers, they added there must be long-term change to battle all types of hate.
“We wish to encourage much more worshippers to return for Fajr prayers and take a stand in opposition to all types of hate together with Islamophobia and antisemitism,” they mentioned.
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