Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Warning: This story contains details some readers may find disturbing.
On Sunday night, around 8:30 p.m., a taxi driver pulled into the Cherryhill Mall parking lot in London, Ont., for what he thought was going to be a quick break.
He had no idea that within minutes, he would be coming face-to-face with the suspect who allegedly rammed a vehicle into a Muslim family on purpose, killing all but a 9-year-old boy in what police believe was a targeted, hate-motivated attack.
Hasan Savehilaghi, president of Yellow London Taxi, shared with CTV National News the chilling details of the encounter between the suspect and his colleague.
“He's shaken,” Savehilaghi said. “He's terrified.”
The suspect pulled up behind the taxi driver in a pick-up truck, hurling profanities, according to the witness. He was dressed in a military-style helmet and what appeared to be an armoured vest.
“He told my colleague, ‘Call police, I killed somebody,’” Savehilaghi said. “At that second, my colleague realized the front of the vehicle is severely damaged, with a lot of blood on it.”
The taxi driver called 911 and waved down a police cruiser. After police were on the scene, they quickly apprehended the driver of the truck.
“They took the vest off of him, and my colleague mentioned that the person had a swastika on his chest and back on his shirt,” Savehilaghi said.
Perhaps most chilling -- the suspect, 20-year-old Nathaniel Veltman, was laughing, he said.
Salman Afzaal, 46, his wife Mediha Salman, 44, their 15-year-old daughter Yumna and her grandmother Talat Afzaal, 74, were killed Sunday evening by a pick-up truck while they were out for a walk along Hyde Park Road.
The remaining survivor, the couple’s nine-year-old son, is in hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries.
"There is evidence that this was a planned, premeditated act and that the family was targeted because of their Muslim faith," Det.-Insp. Paul Waight said during a briefing on Monday.
The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) called it a terror attack in a statement.
“A man allegedly got in his car, saw a Muslim family walking down the street, and made the decision that they do not deserve to live. He did not know them. This is a terrorist attack on Canadian soil and should be treated as such,” said Mustafa Farooq, the chief executive of the association.
Records show Veltman purchased a truck at a London dealership on May 12.
“It was a normal transaction,” Kai Idris, general manager of Southwest Auto Group, told CTV News. “I’m completely saddened by this.”
Veltman will appear in court tomorrow morning. He is facing charges of four counts of first degree murder, and one count of attempted murder.
If you need mental health help in the wake of the London, Ont. vehicle attack, support and resources are available here.
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.