Neighbourhood Watch Bulletin for 2022-03-14

HATE CRIMES UP

A hate crime is a criminal offence committed against a person or property which is motivated by hate/bias or prejudice based on race, national or ethnic origin, disability, sexual orientation, or other similar factor. Hate Crimes create fear and mistrust which can deeply impact our community.

Today, the Ottawa Police Service Hate and Bias Crime Unit released its 2021 annual statistics that show an increase of 43.6% for reported hate-motivated incidents. “This is a troubling trend considering not all hate-motivated incidents are reported to police,” said Ottawa Police Sgt. Ali Toghrol

The most serious violations seen in 2021 were:

  • Mischief to property
  • Assault
  • Threats/utter to person
  • Mischief hate
  • Assault with weapon

The groups most victimized were:

  • Jewish
  • Black
  • LGBTQ+
  • East and South-East Asian
  • Arab and West Asian
  • Muslim

More information about hate-motivated incidents can be found online.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of a hate-motivated crime, please report it to the Ottawa Police at 613-236-1222, ext. 7300 or online.

Anonymous tips can be submitted by calling Crime Stoppers toll-free at 1-800-222-8477 or at crimestoppers.ca