11 people now charged in hate-motivated mischief investigation at Toronto Indigo store

Spike in hate crimes amid Israel-Hamas war Toronto police say they have seen a spike in hate-motivated crimes since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war.

Eleven people have now been charged in connection with a hate-motivated mischief investigation at a major book store chain in Yorkville, Toronto police say.

According to police, officers were called to the area of Bay and Bloor streets at around 4:15 a.m. on Nov. 10 for a mischief call.

Police allege a group of suspects glued posters to the doors and windows of the Indigo store in the area before pouring red paint on the windows and sidewalk.

Footage from CP24’s cameras at the time of the incident showed that the posters displayed an image of the company’s Jewish CEO Heather Reisman alongside the words “Funding Genocide.”

Last week, police said one person, identified as 41-year-old Nisha Toomey, of Toronto, was arrested and charged with mischief over $5,000 in connection with the incident.

In a news release issued Thursday, Toronto police confirmed that 10 more people, who are all residents of Toronto, are facing charges in the case.

Sharmeen Khan, 45, MacDonald Scott, 56, Mercedes Lee, 44, Suzanne Narain, 38, Lesley Wood, 56, Sarom Rho, 29, Ian Doty, 43, Stuart Schussler, 39, Karl Sebastian Gardner, 33, Clement Cheng, 26, each face one count of mischief over $5,000 and one count of conspiracy to commit an indictable offence.

They are scheduled to appear in court in January, Toronto police said.

“The investigation remains ongoing and is being treated as a suspected hate-motivated offence,” the police service said in a written statement.

Indigo has been a subject of boycott campaigns for years over its founder’s HESEG Foundation for Lone Soldiers.

During a meeting of the Toronto Police Services Board on Thursday morning, Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw said that the city has seen a spike in both antisemitic and Islamophobic or anti-Palestinian hate crimes since the onset of the Israel-Gaza war on Oct. 7, calling the increase “staggering.”

“These are our alarming trends in our city,” he said.

“To combat these deeply concerning issues we have committed a significant number of resources to address these overall increases, as well as every category of hate.”