The 21-year-old man accused of the terrorism-related murder of four members of the Afzaal family in London, Ont. will go directly to trial, a court heard Wednesday
Federal prosecutor Lisa Matthews said the Crown obtained a preferred indication for Nathaniel Veltman last month, which means that he will not have a preliminary inquiry — a court hearing where a judge decides if there is enough evidence to proceed to trial. Veltman’s case will now skip that step and either go to trial or be resolved at the Superior Court of Justice.
Preferred or direct indictments are used “only in circumstances involving serious violations of the law and where it is the public interest to do so,” according to the federal Crown prosecution manual.
Veltman is accused of deliberately driving his truck into the Muslim family out on an evening walk on June 6, 2021. Salman Afzaal, 46, his 44-year-old wife Madiha Salman, their 15-year-old daughter Yumna and her 74- year-old grandmother, Talat Afzaal, were killed while out for an evening walk. The couple’s nine-year-old son, Fayez, was seriously injured.
Police have alleged the incident was motivated by hate against the Islamic faith.
Veltman faces four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder, in what prosecutors allege was an act of terrorism.
His next court appearance is in April.
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