Stratford police investigating restaurant vandalism as hate crime
Staff at Sirkel Foods found graffiti on their door Tuesday morning. (Submitted: Kelly Ballantyne)
The Stratford Police Service is investigating a hate crime at Sirkel Foods after staff reported homophobic graffiti Tuesday morning.
Police responded to reports of vandalism just after 6 a.m, at the restaurant in downtown Stratford.
In a news release issued Wednesday, police said the back of the building was spray painted with hate speech directed at the LGBTQ2+ community.
Police believe the offence was committed overnight on Oct. 31 to Nov. 1.
“It needs to be emphasized that all hate motivated criminal offences reported to the Stratford Police are taken seriously, and investigated thoroughly,” Stratford Police said in the release.
Police said this is the second incident of property damage at the restaurant – the first being on Sept. 16, 2022 when a person threw eggs at the business. It is unclear if the two incidents are released and no suspects have been identified.
Police are assuring the public that both investigations are open. Anyone with information is asked to come forward.
On Tuesday owner Kelly Ballantyne told CTV News the incident is troubling but they won’t be deterred.
“Love always wins. Hate will never win in this community, and we will just scream louder and be brighter,” Ballantyne said.
Kitchener Top Stories
-
-
-
UPDATE TO COME
UPDATE TO COME Cambridge council to vote on how to roll out new speed limits
-
-
-
-
-
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Most of the city is evacuating': Gridlock on Alberta highway after evacuation order in Fort McMurray
Four Fort McMurray neighbourhoods were ordered to evacuate on Tuesday as a wildfire gets closer to the city.
Sask. police seize 1.5M pieces of evidence, lay 60 more charges in child exploitation case
Saskatchewan RCMP have revealed that a historic sexual assault investigation has led to the discovery of alleged crimes against children dating back to 2005.
'Inappropriate' behaviour shuts down Dublin to New York City portal
Less than a week after two public sculptures featuring a livestream between Dublin, Ireland, and New York City debuted, 'inappropriate behaviour' in real-time interactions between people in the two cities has prompted a temporary shutdown.
Bouchard scores late to lift Oilers over Canucks, tie series
After a final frame that saw the visiting Vancouver Canucks claw their way back and tie the game late, a point shot by Oilers defenceman Evan Bouchard with 38 seconds left (until what seemed like certain overtime) iced the 3-2 victory for Edmonton to knot the series.
Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker rails against Pride month, working women in commencement speech
Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker railed against Pride month, working women, President Biden's leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic and abortion during a commencement address at Benedictine College last weekend.
King Charles III unveils his first official portrait since his coronation
King Charles III has unveiled the first portrait of the monarch completed since he assumed the throne, a vivid image that depicts him in the bright red uniform of the Welsh Guards against a background of similar hues.
Full List
Full List Are these Canada's best restaurants? Annual top 100 list revealed
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
Alberta announces the 4 health agencies that will replace AHS later this year
The province has released more information on its plan to break up Alberta Health Services and replace it with four sector-based health agencies.
Biden administration moving ahead on US$1 billion arms package for Israel, AP sources say
The Biden administration has told key lawmakers it is sending a new package of more than US$1 billion in arms and ammunition to Israel, two congressional aides said Tuesday.
Shopping Trends
The Shopping Trends team is independent of the journalists at CTV News. We may earn a commission when you use our links to shop. Read about us.
