Muslim family targeted in attack: Canadian police

People pay their respects at the spot where a man killed four members of a Muslim family in London, Canada on Monday. Pic/AFP

A driver plowed a pickup truck into a family of five, killing four of them and seriously injuring one in a deliberate attack that targeted the victims because they were Muslims, Canadian police said Monday.

Authorities said a young man was arrested in a nearby mall after the incident Sunday night in the Ontario city of London. Police said a black pickup truck mounted a curb and struck the victims at an intersection. "This was an act of mass murder perpetuated against Muslims," Mayor Ed Holder said. "It was rooted in unspeakable hatred."

The extended family issued a statement identifying the dead as Salman Afzal, 46; his wife Madiha, 44; their daughter Yumna, 15; and a 74-year-old grandmother whose name was withheld. The hospitalized boy was identified as Fayez. The family said the public needs to stand against hate and Islamophobia. "This young man who committed this act of terror was influenced by a group that he associated with, and the rest of the community must take a strong stand against this, from the highest levels in our government to every member of the community," they said.

Nathaniel Veltman, 20, was in custody facing four counts of first-degree murder.

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