Police seek 3 men after suspected hate-motivated attack outside Vaughan liquor store
CBC
Police in York Region are looking for three men after two people were assaulted outside a Vaughan liquor store on the weekend in a suspected hate-motivated attack in which the assailants allegedly used homophobic slurs.
The men were last seen in a black Nissan Rogue with the Ontario licence plate CLHL733, police say.
In a news release Tuesday, York Regional Police said a man, 26, and a woman, 27, were assaulted at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday outside the store in the area of Jane Street and Major Mackenzie Drive West.
The pair had left just the store when they were accosted by a group of men who had shown up in the parking lot in the black Nissan Rogue, spokesperson for York Regional Police Sgt. Clint Whitney said on Tuesday.
One of the men allegedly commented on the man's choice of alcohol and uttered "anti-homosexual derogatory slurs" as he approached the him. Whitney said the container of alcohol had "some rainbow colours on it." The woman stepped between them and was assaulted, police said.
Two more men from the vehicle got involved and the man was also assaulted and knocked to the ground, Whitney said. A bystander intervened and the men fled in their vehicle.
The woman required medical treatment for her injuries and went to hospital. The man suffered minor injuries and did not go to hospital.
Whitney said police's hate crime unit is involved in the investigation.
"We are looking at the possibility of this being a hate-motivated crime," he said.
Whitney added that there have been reports that the suspect may have believed the victim had come out with a Bud Light can.
Bud Light has been the target of homophobia and transphobia after the beer company collaborated with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who posted a video of herself cracking open a Bud Light on her Instagram page.
"Whether it was a Bud Light can or another can, it's really inconsequential. But there were indications that was what precipitated the comments from the suspect," Whitney said.
Regardless of the choice of alcohol, the assaults were "completely unacceptable" and "reprehensible," Whitney added.
Police have released two photos of the primary suspect. He is described as 25 to 35, with a slim build, short buzz-cut hair, a tattoo on his jawline and tattoos on both hands. He was wearing a black Adidas jacket with white stripes on the arms, blue jeans and black and white sneakers with orange on the heels.
Experts are constantly warning the public to be on guard for new and increasingly convincing scams, but police say the holiday shopping season is especially fraught with risk.
A surgeon who used to work at Flin Flon's hospital says residents in the northwestern Manitoba city have been left in a precarious situation after more than five years without general surgery services.
Moubarak Bokhit Ali's memories of his home country of Sudan are punctuated by flashes of violence.
The man behind the Moose Jaw health centre that has claimed “a 100 per cent success rate in stopping the progression and in restoring function of people with ALS” says a recent CBC story about his company is evidence that he is seen as “a direct threat to the ALS drug industry.”
The Neighbour to Neighbour Centre’s trans and non-binary grocery program, which offers free food and household products to community members once a month, began with a simple question: how do we get free menstrual products to trans people without being awkward?
Bill Van Vugt is living a life that's unlike most other people his age, and one which has seen him turn a longtime hobby into championship gold.
The provincial government is taking steps toward improving Alberta's lucrative sand and gravel industry.
As medical labs across Ontario remain understaffed, one medical association is calling on the province to expand labs’ capacity for student placements by funding positions to train them.
The year wrapping up means it's getting closer to tax season, and the federal Community Volunteer Income Tax Program will once again be offering free filing services for Islanders with modest incomes.
It's not so easy to remove a politician from office between elections in Canada.
Natasha Martin-Mitchell says creating art gives her a sense of calmness that acts as a medicine during stressful times.
Gabriel Vilardi scored twice and star goaltender Connor Hellebuyck made 24 saves in his first game back from injury to power the Jets to a 5-1 victory over the Washington Capitals on Saturday that snapped Winnipeg's three-game losing skid.
Alberta’s auditor general Doug Wylie says his office's budget will be $1.5 million short next fiscal year.