Toronto police have charged a man after investigating a heated exchange at a ferry terminal as a suspected hate-motivated crime.
A video was posted on Facebook earlier this week that showed a confrontation at the Jack Layton Ferry Terminal in Toronto between what appeared to be a white man with blonde hair and a Muslim family.
In the video, the blond man can be heard demanding to know where the family is from, and saying they can’t "ask me a question in my (expletive) province."
Police alleged in a statement released Friday that the man repeatedly yelled at two men and assaulted and threatened one man and assaulted the other man.
"Police will lay the charge that they see before them," Const. Jenifferjit Sidhu told The Canadian Press. "We have to consult with Ministry of the Attorney General (on elevating the charges to hate offences), unless it's something that is so clear."
The purpose of the interaction "was clearly hate-motivated," Sidhu said.
"Considering recent events in the city, this is something that we take very seriously," she added.
Lombray Ball, 50, of Toronto has been arrested and charged with two counts of assault and threatening death. He is scheduled to appear in court on Friday.
None of the allegations have been proven in a court of law.
