Calgary police are asking for the public’s help to identify a man accused of verbally harassing and physically threatening another man at a grocery store in December.
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The incident occurred at the T&T Supermarket located at 25 Heritage Meadows Way S.E. at around 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 31, police said in a news release.
According to police, a Ukrainian man was speaking his native language on the phone when he was approached by an unknown man who began to verbally harass and threaten him inside the store.
“As the victim exited the store, the suspect allegedly retrieved a knife from his truck and then approached the victim again, threatening to physically harm him, making references to the ongoing Ukrainian and Russian conflict,” police said.
The victim went back into the store, where store security called police. The suspect fled the scene before officers arrived, police said.
The victim was not physically harmed.
The suspect, described as a man in his 50s with a light skintone, was wearing a baseball cap featuring Russian symbols. He drove a black or dark blue Nissan Frontier that had a detachable Russian flag clipped to the driver’s side door, police said.
Police note that evidence of a hate motivation can be considered as an aggravating factor during sentencing, if a person is found guilty of the related crime.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call police at 403-266-1234. Tips can also be submitted anonymously through the Crime Stoppers website, by calling 1-800-222-8477 or by using the P3 Tips mobile app.
