PETERBOROUGH (Canada): An Indian couple faced racial harassment in the parking lot of Lansdowne Place Mall, prompting police action and disciplinary measures from a local sports group.
According to the victim’s Facebook post, three young men in a white pickup truck targeted the couple, with one humping their car’s side mirror and hurling slurs such as “black” and “shut up, big nose.” The incident, captured on video, quickly spread online, leading to public identification of the harassers.
Peterborough Police charged an 18-year-old from the City of Kawartha Lakes with uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm. While Canada has no specific hate crime charge applicable to this case, police confirmed there was a “hate crime element” that would be addressed in court. The accused has been released and is due in court on September 16.
Police Chief Stuart Betts condemned the behaviour, calling it unacceptable and urging residents to report hate incidents.
The LUG Sports Group, after identifying two of the harassers as its players, suspended them, stating the behaviour “goes against everything we stand for as an organization.”
