Family of Mississauga man beaten in 'anti-Arab' attack pleads for justice at sentencing hearing

A man who was brutally beaten in a 2018 attack that a judge deemed "anti-Arab" described the profound effect the assault had on his whole family during a sentencing hearing in a Brampton courtroom Friday.

Mohammed Abu Marzouk submitted a victim impact statement in Superior Court that explained how difficult the experience has been, especially as a parent.

"My young daughter asked me if I was scared when we went out the first time after the rehab. It was painful to see the impact that my trauma had on her and to feel helpless in my ability to protect her," he wrote.

In January, brothers Janis Corhamzic and Adem Corhamzic, who were previously charged with aggravated assault and assault in the Mississauga attack, were found guilty of aggravated assault but not guilty of attempted murder at a judge-alone trial.

During sentencing submissions, Crown lawyers said they were seeking a sentence of 12 to 13 years for the pair, alongside a 10-year weapons prohibition. Defence lawyers for the brothers said they are seeking a sentence on the lower end of the spectrum, but did not offer specifics.

In her written submission to the court, Marzouk's wife Diana Attar described what happened when she, her husband and their children were about to leave a picnic near the Mississauga Valley Community Centre on July 15, 2018. Mazouk suffered more than 10 skull fractures in the beating.

She previously told CBC News that two men passing on foot behind their car started shouting at the family, "f--king Arab people! Terrorists."

"I was thinking what has my husband done to deserve such treatment," her victim impact statement read. "These perpetrators were not even connecting on a human level," she said.

"They were merciless."

Both brothers addressed the court Friday, saying they feel remorse, embarrassment and shame as parents themselves.

They also said they've undergone anger management counselling and denied the attack was motivated by racism.

In his decision, Justice Fletcher Dawson acknowledged the hateful nature of the attack, but said he believed it to be "anti-Arab, not anti-Muslim."

Sentencing decisions for the case are expected on May 3.