Surrey man suspected of hate crime after ‘pressure cooker’ post about Vaisakhi parade
Posted April 25, 2019 9:43 am.
Last Updated April 25, 2019 10:51 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
SURREY (NEWS 1130) – A man has been arrested following a post to social media regarding the Surrey Vaisakhi parade.
The post was in response to a news story on Facebook, saying they wondered what would have happened if someone had placed a pressure cooker bomb at the event, calling it a “missed opportunity.”
The 46-year-old man was arrested at his home on Wednesday.
“We have arrested one man from Surrey for Public Incitement of Hatred. Our investigation is continuing and charges haven’t been laid at this time,” said Cpl. Elenore Sturko.
RELATED: Surrey RCMP investigate ‘pressure cooker’ post about Vaisakhi parade
“It’s a good opportunity for us to encourage everyone to familiarize themselves with Canada’s laws on hate propaganda,” Sturko said.
“Each of us have a responsibility to make sure that we know what the rules are, when it comes to posting. Everyone can have an opinion but in Canada, spreading hate is actually illegal,” she added.
The parade drew hundreds of thousands of people to Surrey over the weekend. The social media post read: “Imagine what one pressure cooker bomb could have done.”
If you have any information about this incident, you’re asked to call Surrey RCMP at 604-599-0502 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
– With files from Jonathan Szekeres
