Ontario man charged with uttering death threats against protesters outside Toronto hospital: police
Toronto police have charged an Ontario man who allegedly threatened to harm protesters outside of a downtown hospital earlier this week.
In a news release issued Saturday, police said the accused called them on Feb. 14 to “express frustration” towards people demonstrating in front of a Toronto hospital, which they did not name.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
Police allege that the accused, a man from Ontario’s Simcoe County, threatened to attend the hospital to harm the demonstrators.
Paul Scoffield, 49, has been charged with uttering death threats, Toronto police said in a statement.
Scoffield was scheduled to appear in a Toronto courtroom on Friday to answer for the charge. The result of his court appearance was not released.
In an email to CTV News Toronto, police confirmed that they received the call two days after a demonstration took place outside Mount Sinai.
The Monday protest at the historically Jewish hospital saw some demonstrators climbing the scaffolding and waving pro-Palestinian flags in an incident Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has called a "reprehensible" display of antisemitism.
Police have since launched an investigation into that incident.
Protest organizers told CTV News Toronto earlier this week that the hospital was not targeted and “just happens” to be along their “regular rally route."
Toronto police have ramped up their presence along the city’s so called hospital row along University Avenue following the protest.
In a statement released earlier this week, police said: “Interfering with the operations of a hospital is not acceptable.”
“As we have said before, officers use their discretion during large crowd demonstrations and even if arrests are not deemed safe to make at the time, investigations will continue and charges can be laid at a later date,” the statement read.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.