No charges for Edmonton student behind ‘Nazis of YEG’ Instagram page

EDMONTON –  An Edmonton student won’t be facing any criminal charges after creating an Instagram account promoting white supremacy.

On June 4, EPS’s Hate Crime and Violent Extremism Unit (HCVEU) was made aware of an Instagram page called Nazis of YEG.

The account’s bio read, “Nazi Page of Edmonton. White people are Superior” and advocated for the murder of minorities, including people of colour and members of the LGBTQ+ community.

The account began targeting a local student and their family, publicly posting their home address.

Police say the account was quickly shut down, but not before the victim family began getting harassed from people who thought they created the account.

The account was also brought to the attention of a school resource officer.

“The school staff shared their concerns with me that this account may have been created by one of the students,” explained Const. Ellie Arias.

Arias then approached an HCVEU investigator on the case and together they identified a suspect.

EPS says the suspect was comfortable enough with Arias, their school’s resource officer, to open up about creating the account.

“What was most important to me was trying to understand the context as to why the account was created in the first place,” said Arias.

“As it turns out, this case wasn’t about racism, but about bullying.”

The officers worked with the school to find a solution and decide the best level of intervention.

Instead of being charged, the student was given an opportunity to make amends.