Toronto Mayor John Tory to visit vandalized mosque

Toronto’s mayor is set to visit a city mosque that was vandalized over the weekend.

John Tory will visit Baitul Jannah Islamic Centre on Monday evening to show support for the Muslim community in the Scarborough area in east Toronto.

Police say it’s believed someone broke into the mosque Saturday night or early Sunday morning.

It was reported to police that items stolen from the mosque include a donation box and a digital video recording system.

Investigators say there is no evidence to suggest that what happened was hate motivated but the force’s hate crimes unit has been notified out of an abundance of caution.

Police say they’re aware of previous incidents at the same location, including break and enters in March, April and June 2019.

An individual was charged in relation to those earlier break-ins. Police say it’s too soon to say whether those are linked to the most recent report.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 23, 2021.

News from © Canadian Press Enterprises Inc. 2021.