By Amanda Coletta
(WASHINGTON POST) TORONTO — A man accused of mowing down five members of the same family with a black pickup truck in an Ontario city Sunday, killing four and seriously injuring a 9-year-old boy, targeted them because they were Muslim, police said Monday, in what the city’s mayor branded an act of “mass murder.”
Police said the victims were struck while waiting to cross an intersection on a warm and clear Sunday evening in London, Ontario.
A GoFundMe page identified the victims as Salman Afzaal, 46; his wife, Madiha Salman, 44; their daughter, Yumna Salman, 15; and Afzaal’s 74-year-old mother, who was not named. His 9-year-old son, Fayez Salman, is in the hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries. A GoFundMe spokeswoman said the page was the “verified” fundraiser for the family.
“Based on information collected during the course of the investigation, we believe that this was an intentional act and that the victims of this horrific incident were targeted,” London Police Chief Steve Williams told reporters Monday. “We believe the victims were targeted because of their Islamic faith.”
Detective Superintendent Paul Waight said police Sunday arrested the suspect, Nathaniel Veltman, in a mall parking lot four miles from where the attack occurred “wearing a vest that appeared to be like body armor.” The 20-year-old was charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder.
