Man sentenced in 'shocking, unprovoked attack on a stranger' at Cambridge grocery store

A man who stabbed an employee at a Cambridge grocery store was sentenced to three years behind bars on Monday.

The attack happened on Dec. 11, 2022 at the No Frills location on Franklin Boulevard where Siddique Malik’s daughter worked.

According to the agreed statement of facts, Malik’s daughter spoke to one of her coworkers near the checkout area. Malik then approached the employee from behind and stabbed him in the back. The 21-year-old victim tried to get away but Malik ran after him and slashed him across the throat.

Witnesses said Malik yelled: “Get away from my daughter!” and “How do you like that?”

The incident was also captured on security cameras.

After the attack, Malik was seen wandering the aisles and hiding the knife under one of the store shelves. The 42-year-old was arrested at the scene.

Still from a security video, shown in court, of Siddique Malik attacking a grocery store worker in 2022. (Supplied)

The victim was taken to a Hamilton hospital with two wounds, each about seven centimetres long that required multiple stitches and staples.

In February, Malik pleaded guilty to aggravated assault and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.

Malik’s sentencing

Court heard victim impact statements and sentencing submissions on Monday.

The victim described the attack as “a very scary and life-threatening action that was done to me for no reason whatsoever.” He went on to describe the physical, mental, emotional and financial toll, and said his scars will be a constant reminder of what happened in 2022.

“Now I just want to feel safe and be myself again,” his statement read.

When asked what prompted the attack and Malik’s lawyer replied: “From his point of view, a combination of depression, alcohol, [and] situational anxiety over all sorts of things that went wrong in his life through the pandemic.” Court heard that Malik had lost his job and was under a lot of financial stress at the time of the stabbing.

His lawyer added that Malik believed his children were being disrespected at school and, on that December day, it all became too much.

Waterloo police cruisers on scene of a stabbing incident in Cambridge on Dec.11.

Malik was then given the opportunity to address the court.

He apologized and said that he was embarrassed by what he did. Malik told the judge: “I’m just asking for help. Help me out here and I can promise you it will never happen again.”

The defence wanted a sentence of two years less a day. The Crown, calling it "pure luck" that the victim was not killed, asked for four years behind bars.

The judge ultimately gave Malik three years for the aggravated assault charge, calling it “a shocking, unprovoked attack on a stranger with a weapon.”

The judge said that, while she accepted that Malik was remorseful, only a lengthy jail sentence was fitting for what he did.

Malik was given credit for time already spent in custody and on house arrest, bringing his sentence to just over 34 months. He will serve a four-month concurrent sentence for possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.