Police charge man in connection with December pro-Palestinian demonstration inside Toronto mall

Toronto police attend a demonstration at Toronto Eaton Centre on Dec. 17, 2023. (CTV News)

A man has been charged and arrested in connection with a pro-Palestinian demonstration inside a mall in downtown Toronto last month, according to police. 

On Dec. 17, an estimated 150 people participated in a demonstration in front of the Toronto Eaton Centre Zara location. A week earlier, Zara, a multinational clothing retailer, pulled an advertising campaign that some said bore a resemblance to imagery of the Israel-Hamas war.

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Investigators with Toronto police allege that during the demonstration, where two men blocked the entrance of the store, preventing the employees from closing.

“Both men began pushing security and were trying to gain entry into the store,” a release issued by police Sunday reads.

Police allege that one of the men pushed an officer who tried to remove him from the business and that the other struck an officer with an umbrella.

Video from the day that later circulated online shows a crowd chanting in front of the store. In it, one of the protestors can be heard saying "I'll lay you out on the floor' and threatening to put someone "six feet deep."

On Saturday, officers with Toronto police’s Hate Crime Unit executed a search warrant in relation to the incident. Police say “items of evidentiary value” were seized during the raid. The release did not specify the items.

On Feb. 9, 2024, Toronto police arrested Ahmed Saeed Abufarick, 31, of Toronto in relation to the incident. 

Abufarick has been charged with unlawful assembly, mischief interfere with property and assault to a peace officer with weapon. 

He is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 13, 2024.