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Police are asking for the public’s help identifying a suspect in relation to an alleged hate-motivated attack on a Muslim family in a downtown London park.
London police say a man was with his family in a downtown park near King and Thames streets on Oct. 26, last Saturday, when an unknown man approached them, made “derogatory comments” to the man and assaulted him.
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Investigators on Thursday published an image of a suspect – a white man dressed all in black, including a black toque.
The man who was attacked sustained minor injuries and didn’t require medical attention, police say.
Police say the incident “has been determined to be hate-motivated” but didn’t provide any details about why the man was targeted. The investigation has been reassigned to the force’s hate crime officer, police said.
The National Council of Canadian Muslims said in a post on social media that the family targeted was Muslim.
“We are deeply horrified and saddened to learn of this,” officials with the organization said. “Over the last year, we have seen more and more Muslim families being targeted in hateful attacks in London.”
London Mayor Josh Morgan condemned the incident in a statement on social media.
“Islamophobia has absolutely no home in London or anywhere else. We must continue to condemn these incidents, and work to ensure everyone feels safe in our city,” he said.
Police say that the suspect remained in the area for about 20 minutes after the assault before leaving the park on an e-bike. The suspect is described as a white man, approximately 40 years old who was wearing a black toque, black jacket, dark jeans and light-coloured sneakers.
He was riding a blue e-bike, police said.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call London police at 519-661-5670 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
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