Police were stationed outside an Edmonton-area mosque on Friday, one week after a member was assaulted in what fellow worshippers believe was a hate attack.
The victim had just attended Jumu’ah, or Friday prayers — a weekly practice obligatory for adult men of the Muslim faith — at the Muslim Association of St. Albert when the confrontation happened down the road.
Ali Wahad Noor and his wife were driving home from the mosque on May 1, when when another man allegedly started following them.
Further down the road, the other driver then blocked their vehicle and began shouting.
“I was verbally and physically attacked,” Noor said late Friday afternoon at a news conference that also included RCMP, elected officials and local Muslim leaders.
“Hateful anti-Muslim and racist words were directed at me,” he said.
“What happened was painful, traumatic, and frightening.”
RCMP said it happened near Poirier Avenue and Parkwood Drive in St. Albert, around 2:36 p.m., when officers responded to multiple calls about an assault in progress.
Family spokesperson Ahmed Abdulkadir said the man yelled obscenities at Noor and made threats before both men exited their vehicles.
“He calls the n-word, he calls ape, f—ing ape, you moron, what the heck I’m gonna kill you, what the heck are you doing here, go back to where you came from,” Abdulkadir alleges was said.
The situation escalated from verbal threats to a physical attack.
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“The man then assaulted Ali and knocked him unconscious,” Abdulkadir said.
“This is unacceptable.”
Members of the mosque rushed to help Noor after the attack, providing first aid and cleaning his wounds while waiting for first responders.
Noor was taken to hospital and treated for lacerations and a chipped tooth.
He has since been released and is continuing to recover physically, but Noor said the emotional wounds will take longer to heal.
“No person should ever be targeted because of their faith, race, or identity,” he said.
“This attack has deeply affected me and my family. It has taken away our sense of safety and peace.”
Noor spoke out a week after he was attacked because he says he never wants anyone else to go through such an experience.
“Islamophobic racism or violence should never be accepted in our community. Let us work together to be safe.”
Abdulkadir said the incident has taken an emotional toll on the wider community, which may be longer-lasting.
“You could see the fear that the whole community has about what took place right in front of their mosque,” Abdulkadir said.
“If that’s not hate, I don’t know what it is.”
RCMP increased their presence at the mosque in the days since the attack, including attending during prayer times to provide support and reassurance to community members. Noor expressed gratitude for the quick police response last week and support ever since.
“I ask all of us to stand together against hate and work toward safe and a more united community for everyone,” Noor said.
Police who responded to last week’s attack spoke to witnesses about the the suspect. RCMP said they quickly located the suspect’s vehicle and arrested the driver.
St. Albert resident Ryan Richard Lacasse, 40, has been charged with aggravated assault and uttering threats.
RCMP said they cannot lay charges specifically identifying the crime as hate-motivated, as that determination is made later during the court process, based on the evidence presented.
“In our investigation, there is indication that racial slurs were uttered during the assault,” said Staff Sgt. Mgr. Andrew Hobson with the St. Albert RCMP.
“All the evidence gathered has been forwarded to the Crown prosecutor’s office and was taken into account in the charges laid and in the court proceedings to come.”
If a judge determines the offence was motivated by hate, it could be considered an aggravating factor at sentencing and lead to a longer penalty.
“We take these types of incidents extremely seriously,” Hobson said.
“Racism of any type has absolutely no place in our society.”
The investigation is ongoing and police said while significant evidence has been collected and serious charges laid, witnesses who have not yet spoken to police are encouraged to come forward.
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