Hate Crime: 4 Members Of Pakistani-Origin Family Killed In Canada Because Of Faith
In a heartbreaking Islamophobic incident, four members of a London, Ont., family were struck and killed by a vehicle in the city’s northwest on Sunday evening. They are believed to have been targeted because they were Muslim, the area’s police chief said as reported by Global News. “We believe this was an intentional act and that the victims of this horrific incident were targeted,” Chief Steve Williams told during a news conference.
An eye witness to the scene of collusion said, “My heart is just so broken for them today. I feel like this hasn’t sunk in for me and I’m just someone that I witnessed it, let alone the actual family and everybody involved.”
On Sunday evening, the alleged driver in a pick-up truck drove over the sidewalk and struck the family members. According to local police officers, a 74-year-old woman died at the scene, another 44-year-old woman, a 46-year-old man and a 15-year-old girl were rushed to hospital but they succumbed to injuries. One child who remains in the hospital is out of danger and undergoing treatment.
Terming the incident a “devastating loss” for the community and ruling out the possibility of a hit and run incidence, the police chief held that the victims were “targeted”. To confirm the allegation of hate crime, the evidence was pointed out. “There is evidence that this was a planned, premeditated act motivated by hate. It is believed that these victims were targeted because they were Muslim,” maintained officer Waight who had responded to the emergency call and made these observations while investigating the scene.
“This was an act of mass murder, perpetrated against Muslims, against Londoners, and rooted in unspeakable hatred. The magnitude of such hatred can make one question who we are as a city and who we are as Londoners,” London, Ont. Mayor Ed Holder told reporters while calling the act one of “mass murder”.
The 20-year-old accused was subsequently arrested by the police on charges of murder. However, the charges have not been proven in the court.
The article seems a bit hysterical to me and short on actual fact,; as it correctly points out guilt is for a jury to decide and not a newspaper.
It is believed, “why,” and by , “who ?”
Nonetheless this is profoundly tragic event and not just for the immediate family and my thought go out to them.
If it is proven however I remain confident that punishment will be severe and appropriate.
This is not London UK, not that that makes any difference to the poor family but it is poor and misleading reporting to use that headline.