A London, Ontario lawyer is speaking after saying his elderly father was assaulted over the weekend in a Costco parking lot and told to “go back where he came from.”
London lawyer Nawaz Tahir, who is a prominent member of London’s Muslim community, said his 75-year-old father, sister, and husband were waiting to park in a South London parking spot at Costco on Sunday for the morning when the incident occurred.
Tahir, who was not at Costco when the incident occurred, is speaking on behalf of his family.
He said the family was waiting to get into the parking spot when a man who was prevented from leaving his parking spot got out of the car and started yelling at the family.
Tahir said the man was screaming and proceeded to try to remove the car’s windshield wipers, slammed on the window, and then opened the door on the passenger side of the car, where his father was sitting, and grabbed him.
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Tahir said several people in the parking lot intervened to get the man to back off and let his father go.
“At least two witnesses heard the man yelling at the three to return to their country, and at least two of the witnesses, including a Costco employee, said they have every right to be here,” he said.
“One of the passers-by called the police, but when they arrived, the man had already left.”
Someone was able to take a picture of the man’s car and license plate before the man left the scene.
In a post on his Twitter yesterday, Tahir said police told him they were not leaning on the assault charges, saying that after the family was able to park their car and the man continued to yell at them, his father raised his fists in defense.
“Hearing the other guy’s continuous verbal tirade, (my father) raised his fists, and they say that the act of raising his fists was more of a consensual fight than aggression.
“In my opinion, by then the assault had already taken place.”
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Since posting on Twitter, Tahir said police have said the assault charges have not yet been dismissed.
“This investigation is active and ongoing. We take incidents like these seriously and can confirm that officers continue to investigate this matter, ”police said in a statement to Global News.
Tahir said he was “feeling a little better” on Monday.
“I was quite disappointed last night after my conversation with the police, but now it seems that more is being done.”
Tahir said he is grateful for those who stepped in to help his family, and said action like this is what helps us fight hatred.
Islamophobia in London is nothing new, and racist incidents against residents became more widely known in the wake of the June 6 terrorist attack that killed a local Muslim family.
“We continue, even after June 6, to hear stories of people who have been subjected to this type of verbal abuse and hate incidents, and as a country we need to move this forward with stronger hate crime legislation and increased support for victims of hate crimes, ”Tahir said.
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Reference-globalnews.ca