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Man accused of assaulting customer, yelling ‘racially offensive language’ in Halifax Costco

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Halifax police are investigating an assault and a racist rant at a Costco.

Halifax police are looking for a man who allegedly attacked a customer inside Costco while shouting “racially offensive language” over the weekend.

Police say they responded to a reported assault that happened at the Costco on Chain Lake Drive around 1 p.m. on Saturday.

They learned a man yelled at a family and then assaulted another customer while continuing to shout.

The hate crime unit with the Halifax Regional Police is involved in the investigation.

Suspect in Halifax Costco assault
Costco assault suspect Halifax police are looking for a man who allegedly yelled racially offensive language and assaulted a customer in Costco. (Source: Halifax Regional Police)

The suspect is described as a white man between 30 and 40 years old. He is bald and was wearing a black T-shirt, jeans and black boots during the incident.

Anyone with information on the suspect’s identity is asked to call police at 902-490-5020, or anonymously contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or at www.crimestoppers.ns.ca.

‘Another misinformed person about Islam’

Mahmoud Omar, an imam with the Ummah Masjid & Community Centre in Halifax, said the video of the incident was “disturbing.”

“It’s another misinformed person about Islam,” he said. “Islamophobia, unfortunately, it is on the rise. There’s a lack of education and misinformation online.

“It is better to talk about what’s going on rather than brushing it under the carpet.”

Costco in Halifax
Halifax Costco The Costco in Halifax is pictured. (Callum Smith/CTV News Atlantic)

Steven Zhou, media and communications lead at National Council of Canadian Muslims, said they have received similar reports of attacks and threats in the last month.

In the video, a woman confronted the man.

“She became the Nova Scotia hero,” said Omar. “On behalf of the Muslim community, thank you very much.”

With files from CTV News Atlantic’s Callum Smith

Suspect in Costco hate crime
Costco hate crime Halifax police are looking for a man who allegedly yelled racially offensive language and assaulted a customer in Costco. (Source: Halifax Regional Police)

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