TORONTO -- 33-year-old man has been charged following several hate-motivated incidents targeting Asian victims in Markham, according to York Regional Police.
On Mar. 16, police responded to reports of an assault on Pillar Rock Crescent at around 2 p.m.
The victim was outside walking when a suspect ran up behind her and hit her in the back with an object, police said.
In their investigation, police located more victims and linked five other incidents that happened between January and March to the same suspect.
All of the victims are Asian and investigators believe that the incidents were hate-motivated.
On Monday, police arrested and charged 33-year-old Arjun Choudhari, of Markham, in connection with the investigation.
He is facing six charges, including assault with a weapon, three counts of assault and two counts of criminal harassment.
“York Regional Police is aware hate-motivated incidents are often not reported and want to assure our community that we take these incidents seriously and investigate all reports received. We strongly encourage residents to report any incident they believe may be motivated by hate, racism or discrimination,” police said in a press release.
The charges have not been proven in court.
Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti says he is “deeply disturbed and disgusted” by the incidents.
“...I strongly condemn all forms of racism towards any cultural group,” he said in a statement.
“One person’s actions do not reflect our community. All of us stand in support of our Asian community when they face hate and discrimination.”
Anyone with additional information can contact police at 1-866-876-5423, ext. 7541 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS.
