WARNING: This story contains graphic language. Discretion is advised.
CALGARY – It started out as an act of hatred.
Brian Durocher returned to his car in Calgary’s Tuscany LRT commuter lot Thursday night to find the words “Kill Muslims” painted on the side.
“My mind is boggled; I just don’t understand why someone would do that, I just don’t get it,” Durocher said.
“What’s written on the side of it is really disappointing to me as a Canadian, and a Calgarian. This is not us; this is not how we behave.”
Durocher’s car was one of five targeted by the offenders, along with the walls, doors and windows of the nearby CTrain building.
The words “F—k Muslim Goofs, “f—k Syria”, and “f—k Syrian ‘refs’’ are clearly hate speech, according to Sgt. Eric Levesque of the Calgary Police Hate Crimes Unit.
“This case is not grey at all. In this case, it’s very clear this was motivated by hate–the message speaks for itself really.”
Watch below: Global’s Nancy Hixt reports on the graffiti found throughout the Tuscany LRT station Dec. 3
Police collected forensic evidence; the two men who committed the crime were caught on CCTV footage.
Once the suspects are identified, investigators plan to prosecute the incident as a hate crime.
The two men who painted the words have accomplished the goal of causing hurt among Syrian Calgarians like Jamal Hammadieh.
“That’s a hate crime,” Hammadieh said. “We (are) all Canadian, just some of us came here first before the others, and to be in this manner to a fellow Calgarian and Canadian? You never thought you’d see this in your own backyard.”
Just as quickly as the messages went up, they were washed away by city workers. But other Calgarians were compelled to do more.
Commuters at the Tuscany Station were greeted with messages of love Friday morning, as university students held up giant red hearts.
READ MORE: Calgarians spread messages of love at LRT station where hateful graffiti appeared
“We were trying to almost reverse the actions that happened yesterday in such a quick fashion, that they (transit riders) were happy to see in just a day’s difference what we can do as a community,” Nadir Khan said.
In the end, the true spirit of Calgary shined through for Durocher, when a northwest auto body shop cleaned the graffiti off his car free of charge.
“Let’s get beyond last night,” Durocher said. “I want this story to be about how people help one another.
“When situations like this happen, people do take care of one another and this is a great city to live in.”
Watch below: Global’s Jenna Freeman reports on the messages of love shared in the CTrain station Friday morning.
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