A 23-year-old man is set to appear at the Montreal courthouse to face charges for the assault of a Jewish man at a park with the victim’s children just steps away.
Sergio Yanes Preciado has been charged with one count of assault causing bodily harm. The Service de police de la Ville de Montréal arrested him on Monday.
The incident, which was partially captured on video, sparked public outcry and renewed calls for elected officials to do more to address antisemitism.
The attack happened Friday at Dickie-Moore Park near the corner of Beaumont and de l’Épée avenues just before 2:30 p.m.
The 28-second video circulating online begins with the assailant straddling and striking the 32-year-old victim, who is on the ground, several times.
The victim gets up on his knees and one of his children can be seen clinging to him. The attacker picks up some belongings in a grocery bag and then tosses what appears to be a kippa, a head covering worn by Jewish men and boys, into a splash pad area.
‘Emotionally, it’s definitely taking a toll’
Mayer Feig, a spokesperson for Montreal’s Hasidic Jewish community, told CBC News that he has been in constant communication with the man who was attacked.
He also confirmed the victim is a member of his community.
He said three children were present at the time of the attack — ages nine, six and three.
He said the 32-year-old man suffered several facial bruises and a broken nose.
He added that the victim is “very, very, very traumatized.”
“They’re not doing well as a family,” Feig said. “Emotionally, it’s taking a toll.”
Jeremy Levi, the mayor of Hampstead, a municipality on the island of Montreal, posted the video on X last Friday, describing the incident as “beyond deplorable” and an “outrage against basic human decency.”
Over the weekend, Prime Minister Mark Carney released a statement about the attack, writing on X that it “was an appalling act of violence.”
“Everyone in Canada has an inalienable right to live in safety,” he wrote.
Feig says, based on what he has told by the victim, the assailant didn’t say anything during the attack. But he said he believes what took place qualifies as a hate crime.
“To us, to him and the community, we feel this is definitely stemming from the climate that’s been allowed to fester in Montreal.”