A 22-year-old Georgetown man faces an assault charge following a suspected “hate-motivated” incident in Downtown Guelph early Saturday morning.
Two males were involved in a heated verbal altercation in the area of Wyndham Street North and Douglas Street shortly after 3 a.m. when a passerby attempted to intervene and deescalate the situation, a police news release explains.
One of the males began recording the passerby, who is a member of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, while yelling homophobic slurs. He then slapped the passerby across the cheek.
The males’s friend reportedly apologized to the victim but the male continued yelling slurs and spat toward the victim.
No physical injuries were reported.
Police located the suspect nearby and made an arrest.
