Jewish home in Surrey egged, targeted in apparent hate crime
Posted October 16, 2023 4:30 pm.
Mounties in Surrey are hoping to identify a suspect after a home that provides services to Jewish communities was targeted in an incident that “may have been motivated by hate.”
Zev Schtroks, whose parents own the South Surrey home, known as a Chabad house, says he ran into a man while he was leaving to meet his father around 6:30 p.m. Friday.
“I walk up to leave and he’s standing right there and he’s like, ‘Is this the Jewish temple?’ And I’m like, ‘Why do you ask?’ He’s like, ‘Because I need to know. Is this the Jewish temple?'” recalled Schtroks, who says he saw a carton of eggs under the man’s arm.
He claims the man then told him he was “God” and that the suspect “needed to egg this place.”
Schtroks says he decided to go back inside to film what the man was doing and called police in the process. He later found that the suspect had indeed egged the house, and had also drawn a swastika on the window.
Schtroks tells CityNews he felt it was more prudent to keep his distance than possibly provoke any sort of violence.
“I saw him wearing a coat and that was like my hesitancy. It was like, what if he has a weapon underneath? So even if I could subdue him … I was like, if he has a weapon, that’s not good. So I decided not to touch him,” he recalled.
The Surrey RCMP says it was called to the home around 6:30 p.m. Despite a search of the area, Mounties say officers were unable to find the suspect.
The RCMP adds its General Investigation Unit has taken over the case and that the BC Hate Crimes Unit has been notified.
“We recognize that incidents of this nature impact the feeling of safety and security for members of our Jewish community,” said Corp. Vanessa Munn.
“Hate has no place in our city and our officers are working to identify the person responsible so that they can be held accountable.”
The suspect is described as a man who is between the ages of 25 to 35 with a slim-to-medium build. He was wearing a purple coat, white shirt, black Adidas sweatpants, and brown shoes at the time of the incident.
The Surrey RCMP is asking anyone with information to contact investigators at 604-599-0502, or make an anonymous report through Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-222-8477.
