Canada police charge man for screwdriver stabbings at gurdwara

Toronto: Canadian police have charged a 27-year-old male in connection with the stabbing of two persons at a gurdwara in Edmonton, Alberta province in the early hours of August 21. The assailant used a screwdriver for the alleged stabbings.

The Nanaksar Gurdwara in Edmonton where the stabbing incident occurred on August 21. (Courtesy: Nanaksar Gurdwara)In a statement issued on Thursday, Edmonton Police Service (EPS) identified the suspect as Austin Sim-Pelletier, and said he was charged with two counts of assault causing bodily harm and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and mischief.

He is expected to make his next court appearance on September 18.

EPS’ Investigative Response Team and EPS Hate Crimes Unit “continue to actively investigate this incident, which includes the ongoing assessment of any evidence relevant to the application of hate-related criminal provisions,” the statement added.

“This investigation is complex and involves numerous investigative steps that we are still diligently working to complete,” EPS Investigations Branch Staff Sergeant Eric Stewart said.

The incident occurred just before 5am on August 21, when the suspect “entered the (Nanaksar) Gurdwara and attempted to access the prayer area when he was confronted by staff,” Edmonton Police Service said in a statement. “The confrontation then escalated and two male patrons of the Gurdwara were stabbed. Witnesses intervened and detained the man until Northeast Branch patrol officers arrived at 5:10am and immediately took him into custody,” the release added.

The suspect had been released from a Federal prison a day earlier on parole after serving a sentence for aggravated assault and assaulting a peace officer.

The victims, males aged 75 and 51 were taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Gurdwara president Zora Singh Grewal told the Hindustan Times at the time that the victims were a granthi or priest and a sewadar or volunteer. He said they were shocked at the attack. “Our temple is peaceful all the time. We never had a problem, but all of a sudden this person came in,” he said.

He said others at the gurdwara prevented the attacker from causing damage to the Guru Granth Sahib, the holiest scripture in Sikhism, and subdued him before handing him over the police who were already looking for him as he had earlier threatened drivers on a highway.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed his outrage over the attack on the gurdwara. In a social media post, he described it as “appalling”.

As anti-immigration sentiment has risen in Canada, it has mainly impacted Indians, who form the largest immigrant group in recent years. And Sikhs have borne the brunt of the negativity given they were the most visible of Indian-origin immigrants to Canada.

That was evident last week, when prior to a nagar kirtan in Winnipeg on Sunday, hate graffiti was found sprayed along with route. An image of one example posted on social media read, “Go back to Inda or we will kill you.”

Winnipeg resident Amarjeet Warraich described the incident as “concerning to everybody”. He said such racist targeting of the annual nagar kirtan hadn’t occurred earlier.

Even before the Edmonton incident, a gurdwaras in Calgary, also in the province of Alberta, reported receiving a threatening call.

Anirudh Bhattacharya is a Toronto-based commentator on North American issues, and an author. He has also worked as a journalist in New Delhi and New York spanning print, television and digital media. He tweets as @anirudhb.Read More