Police in London, Ont., are searching for a man in connection with a theft and arson at a North London residence over the weekend which a leading Muslim group called an Islamophobic attack.
Investigators say a man showed up on foot at a home in the area of Wateroak Drive around 9:30 p.m. on June 8 and left a short time later carrying some items he took from the front yard of the residence.
Police say the same man then returned to the home around 10:30 p.m. and allegedly started a fire on the front porch before leaving.
Fire crews were able to extinguish the blaze and no injuries were reported. However, the fire caused approximately $30,000 damage to the home.
The man is described as 30 to 50 years of age with a medium to heavy build. He was last seen wearing grey shoes, dark pants, a light grey zip-up sweater with vertical black accents on the sides under the arms, a dark-coloured toque, and a medical mask.
“Investigators are appealing to anyone who has information about this incident or the person in these photos, or who has seen him in the area of Wateroak Drive to please contact the London Police Service,” police said in a statement.
While police made no mention of the occupants of the home, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) indicated that the home targeted belonged to a Muslim family.
NCCM officials say they plan to speak further this afternoon on the arson incident and what they say is a “pattern of Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism in the city and beyond.”