
Toronto police searching for two men after antisemitic graffiti was discovered in North York last month.
Toronto police are searching for two men in a suspected hate-motivated act after antisemitic graffiti was discovered in the North York district of the city last month.
According to a report on CityNews, authorities were first notified of a mischief incident on June 9 in the Yonge Street and Empress Avenue area in Willowdale.
Police now say two men attended three separate locations in the area and committed antisemitic vandalism and graffiti.
Both male suspects are described as 16 to 20 years old. One man, described as having a slim build, was last seen wearing all black clothing and a blue face mask.
The other man was last seen wearing a dark-colored hat, a grey long-sleeved shirt and jacket with reflective stripes down the arms, black shorts, black shoes with white soles, and a blue mask.
The public is asked to contact police with any information on the two suspects.
Toronto has seen a spate of antisemitic incidents in recent months. Last week, a suspect was arrested over antisemitic graffiti found in June near Toronto’s York University.
Toronto Police Services identified the suspected vandal as Trevor York, 35, according to a statement. He was arrested after an investigation into the hate-motivated graffiti. He was charged with multiple counts of property damage under $5,000 and hate-motivated break and enter.
The graffiti was discovered in a garage close to the university’s campus. It consisted of an antisemitic caricature that encouraged people to “shoot a Jew in the head.”
Last month, a 21-year-old Uber driver who appeared at a Toronto yeshiva and allegedly threatened to “kill 30 Jews” was charged with multiple counts, including assault, uttering threats and assault with a weapon.
In March, antisemitic graffiti was found at Birchmount Park Collegiate Institute high school in Scarborough.
In early March, similar antisemitic graffiti was found outside three schools in different areas of the city.
The incidents were being treated as “hate-motivated” and were investigated by the Toronto police’s Hate Crime Unit.
At the beginning of February, students performed a Nazi salute and depicted the swastika in front of students at the Charles H. Best Middle School, located in the Bathurst Manor neighborhood of North York, which has a significant Jewish population.
A week later, students at the Valley Park Middle School performed a Nazi salute in front of a Jewish teacher.