Guelph Police Service said it took two weeks to release information about an assault on an officer at the mosque on Water Street in an effort to maintain public safety and prevent any possible backlash against the Muslim Society of Guelph.
The incident occurred on Friday Oct. 9 and was not reported publicly until 12 days later when local media requested information on the assault.
Const. Kyle Grant told GuelphToday Monday there were two primary reasons the information about the alleged assault was not immediately released.
Because the incident occurred on the Friday prior to Thanksgiving, the next news release from Guelph Police was not sent out until the following Tuesday and would cover the events over a 96-hour span.
Secondly, said Grant, was the sensitive nature of the incident.
"With this incident we had to be very careful in regards to public safety,” said Grant. “We were worried about potential retribution against the religious establishment.”
Those two factors needed to be weighed, said Grant, and in the meantime the department’s senior leadership team spoke to the MSOG and the police union about releasing information about the assault.
A news release was ultimately sent after media requested information about the incident almost two weeks later on Oct. 22.
“When we started getting questions a decision was made and we ultimately ended up releasing the information,” said Grant. “We had to make sure all of the facts were straight and everything was correct before we released it.”
That Guelph Police media release did not paint the whole picture, said Muhammed Sayyed, president of the Muslim Society of Guelph.
Reached by phone Monday, Sayyed confirmed the incident took place at MSOG during Friday prayer service, which the officer was attending.
In the news release, Guelph Police did not mention why the officer was at MSOG other than to say he was attending the service.
“He attends prayers and goes to school for the last three years. He is a part of the community,” said Sayyed of the officer who was allegedly assaulted.
Omitting the fact he was a member of the mosque may have given some the wrong impression, said Sayyed.
Guelph Police Association president Matt Jotham noted the officer was attending Friday prayer on his lunch hour, which he said is supported by the Guelph Police Service.
A man from Kingston, who was also attending the service was visibly upset at the presence of a uniformed Guelph Police officer because he had recently been arrested, said Sayyed.
“He became more and more aggressive,” said Sayyed of the man.
Grant confirmed the man had been charged two days prior to the incident at the mosque with an assault with a weapon charge.
The officer who was attending the service was not a part of that investigation, noted Grant.
Other members of the mosque attempted to reason with the man and hold him back, but he broke free and physically engaged the officer.
“They were telling him this is not the place for this,” said Sayyed.
In an email, Jotham called the assault an unprovoked attack and said the officer missed four days of work due to a concussion diagnosis. He said he is thankful for the intervention from the other MSOG members attending the service.
"I was obviously concerned about my member, their injuries and the impact this incident will have on the member," said Jotham. "A place of worship should be a place free of violence."
Jotham said he is typically notified about injuries to members and learned about the incident from a supervisor on Oct. 9, the date it happened.
"I didn’t notice the incident wasn’t released to the media on the day of the incident or on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving weekend. I assumed it would’ve been released to the public," said Jotham.
On Oct. 15, almost a week after the incident, Jotham was made aware by members that a news release did not go out and met with chief Gord Cobey and deputy chief Daryl Goetz to discuss the reasons for that decision.
Jotham said both he and the officer involved in the incident support the decision to make the alleged assault public, noting operational decisions to release information are made by the senior leadership team and chief.
A conducted energy weapon, commonly called a Taser or stun gun, was used to subdue the man before additional officers arrived on scene, said Sayyed.
The officer was being verbally abused because of his faith and his uniform, Sayyed said.
The Kingston man has since been banned from returning to the mosque and two other establishments associated with MSOG, said Sayyed.
The news release eventually sent by the Guelph Police prompted a second discussion with MSOG because of its omissions, said Sayyed.
Although there was initially a concern from police that there would be retribution for the incident against MSOG, Grant said to his knowledge no such incident has been reported to Guelph Police.
The man was charged with:
- assault police officer cause bodily harm
- cause disturbance
- disturbing religious worship
- fail to comply with undertaking
- fail to leave premises when directed
He was held in custody pending a bail hearing and ultimately released. He will appear in court on Nov. 20.
