Police arrest suspect after death threat against Jewish man in Montreal

A screenshot of a video posted on social media showing a man during an altercation in Montreal's Saint-Laurent borough. (Source: X/Mayer Feig)

Montreal police say they arrested a suspect Friday after receiving reports of a man making “threats and hateful remarks” toward a group of people in the city’s Saint-Laurent borough.

At around 4:40 p.m., police received several 911 calls and responded to the intersection of Fraser and Saint-Louis streets.

When officers arrived, they quickly found the suspect, a 28-year-old man, and arrested him after speaking with witnesses.

A short video posted on social media shows part of the altercation. In the video, a man can be heard saying “we will kill you” and “you f-cking pig” when speaking to people, including at least one of them being a member of the Jewish community, before walking away.

Caroline Chevrefils, a Montreal police spokesperson, said the suspect will remain in custody until he appears in court Saturday via videoconference from a detention centre.

Police say the hate crime unit was informed of the incident and that it will be up to the Crown prosecution office to determine whether charges will be laid.

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) said in a statement that it was pleased that police made a swift arrest.

“Those who seek to threaten members of our community must be held accountable. If you see something, say something,” the group said in the statement.

The incident comes days after a Jewish father was beaten up by a man in a park while he was with his children. A suspect in that case, which was also caught on video, is facing charges.