After what police say was a lengthy investigation, 28-year-old Khalid El Boyok was charged with public incitement of hatred after he allegedly made anti-Semitic remarks towards a group of Jewish demonstrators on the B.C. legislature lawn on March 17, 2024
“The Victoria Police Department takes all hate offences seriously, regardless of the targeted group. Our role is to police behaviours, not beliefs,” said Det. Tom Hayward, VicPD’s hate crime coordinator. “The prolonged nature of this investigation is an indicator of the seriousness of this type of offence and the complex nature of proving criminal code offences related to hate propaganda.”
According to the department, the term 'hate crime' is not used in the criminal code, however, it refers to hate propaganda offences and hate-motivated offences – specific incidents that are outlined in the criminal code, which includes advocating for genocide, public incitement of hatred, offences driven by bias, prejudice, or hate that would be considered an aggravating factor during sentencing, or name calling, insults, slurs and offensive signs or materials.
These cases are rare, and some require the consent of the Attorney General to proceed, according to VicPD.
Further details about the case are not available as the matter is now before the courts.
Anyone who is a victim of a hate-motivated offence is asked to file a police report by calling ECOMM at 250-995-7654 or 911 in the case of an emergency.
