A 37-year-old man from London, Ont., has been ordered not to attend Wortley Road after being charged in connection with an altercation at a Pride event in Wortley Village over the weekend, court documents show.
The accused, identified by police Tuesday as Richard Sillers, was arrested Saturday and charged with causing a disturbance and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. He was released by police on Tuesday with an undertaking.
Officers say they were called to a large disturbance near Wortley Road and Elmwood Avenue around 2 p.m. Saturday near where Wortley Pride was taking place on the Green.
On Sunday, police indicated that the incident was being reviewed by the police’s hate crime investigator.
In a statement on Monday, London Police Chief Steve Williams said investigators were continuing to look into the incident, adding that the force would and would have a large and visible presence at this weekend’s Pride London Festival and parade.
“We have a robust plan in place to have a large and visible presence. We have no specific information that anything is going to happen, but as always, we need to be prepared to ensure the safety of everyone,” Williams told 980 CFPL on Tuesday in an interview on London Live with Mike Stubbs.
“What I really want to reassure people of, those who are participating directly in the celebration or even just watching from the sidelines … is that they’re safe and we have their back.”
Williams said London police would have officers deployed along the parade route at key points, including marching in the parade itself, as well as at the festival in Victoria Park.
“We quite often get asked the question of ‘why didn’t you lay a hate crime (charge)?’ Well, there is no hate crime charge, per se. It’s really additional information to support the evidence for an existing charge,” he said.
“What happens is if our officers or investigators come across evidence that the incident was hate motivated, that information is made available to the Crown attorney when a charge is laid and it comes into play during sentencing.”
According to court documents, Sillers is charged with causing a disturbance “in or near a public place, namely Wortley Road at Elmwood Avenue, by shouting,” and possessing a weapon, “namely a blunt object, for a purpose dangerous to the public peace.”
Sillers is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Aug. 25.
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