Edmonton man charged in connection to three recent hate-motivated attacks

EDMONTON (CityNews) – Edmonton police have arrested and charged a man in connection with three recent attacks, which investigators say were hate-motivated.

44-year-old Shane Edward Tremblay, of no fixed address, is charged with three counts of uttering threats and three counts of assault.

Police say the charges stem from three recent attacks, involving women of colour.

READ MORE: EPS probing two recent hate-motivated attacks

The EPS Hate Crimes and Violent Extremism Unit has arrested and charged 44-year-old Shane Edward Tremblay in connection with THREE recent hate-motivated attacks involving Black women. #yeg https://t.co/pIuQbEHYc8

— Rachelle Elsiufi (@Rachelleelsiufi) March 8, 2021

The first incident happened on Feb. 3, 2021 at the University of Alberta Transit Centre.

WATCH: Edmonton police investigate two more hate-motivated attacks

Police allege that a 19-year-old woman wearing a Hijab was waiting outside when she was approached by a man who was making racial comments.

It’s then believed that he became more aggressive towards her and was ‘posturing as though he was about to assault her.’

A transit employee stepped in, and that’s when the suspect fled.

RELATED: ‘I felt this collective fear within the community’: Fighting hate after racist attacks in Edmonton

Half an hour later, around 12:45 p.m. on the same day, police say that a 27-year-old Black woman wearing a Burka was approached by the suspect.

It’s alleged that he crossed the road and stopped in front of the woman, blocking her from walking.

The suspect fled, but returned a short time later, pushed her and made threats to kill her and tear off her Burka.

READ MORE:

• ‘Racism is a real problem:’ Muslim women fearful following attacks in Edmonton 
• ‘They would call me Osama’s cousin’: Muslim sisters share experiences of racism in Canada

Police also say the man was involved in a third case on Jan. 18, 2021.

Reports say that the man approached a 43-year-old Black woman who was outside a convenience store near 91 Street and 82 Avenue at around 2:00 p.m. that afternoon.

He’s believed to have hurled racially motivated threats against the woman, and then followed her inside the store and assaulted her.

She did not require medical attention.

“The actions of this individual have traumatized these three women and created a significant level of fear in our community,” says Sgt. Gary Willits, of the EPS Hate Crimes and Violent Extremism Unit. “I’m grateful to our partners, including ETS Transit officials, the University of Alberta Protective Services, businesses along Whyte Avenue and the convenience store staff, all of whom played an instrumental role in identifying our suspect, who is well known to police and ETS for multiple related incidents over the last few years.”

Edmonton police are also recommending that Section 718.2 of the Criminal Code of Canada be applied, which allows the courts to considered increased sentencing when there’s evidence that the offence was motivated by hatred.