Man arrested and charged after Jewish father assaulted in front of children at Montreal park
Posted August 11, 2025 4:21 pm.
Last Updated August 12, 2025 1:31 pm.
Montreal police have arrested a man in connection with the broad daylight assault of a Jewish father – in front of his children – at Dickie Moore Park on Friday afternoon.
BACKGROUND: Jewish man assaulted in front of children at Montreal park
The SPVM says a 23-year-old suspect was arrested Monday and was charged with assault causing bodily harm.
He appeared briefly Tuesday before a judge from a detention centre in Montreal’s north end. The Crown objected to his release, and he is scheduled to return to court Wednesday for a bail hearing.
Police allege the suspect was in the park’s splash pad when he approached the father and sprayed him with the contents of his water bottle. The suspect then pushed the father to the ground and punched him several times in the face and kneed him, police say.
“B’nai Brith Canada is relieved that police have arrested a suspect in this case,” said Richard Robertson, B’nai Brith Canada’s director of research and advocacy. “What happened Friday afternoon was shocking and horrific. It must serve as a wake-up call for the entire municipality.
“This is what happens when our leaders tolerate an atmosphere in which hateful thugs feel empowered to act with impunity.”
The incident was filmed by a witness, with a 29-second video circulating online showing the assault. A child is seen clinging to their father during the attack at the Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension park.
The video does not show what led to the incident. After the assault, the attacker is seen picking up items in a grocery bag and tossing what appears to be a kippah — a traditional Jewish head covering — into the splash pad.
Robertson is questioning why Montreal police did not identify the victim as Jewish in their press release Monday, not did they mention the fact that his kippah was thrown into a fountain.
“Omitting such critical facts does a disservice to the public and gives the impression that the authorities are tone-deaf to the crisis Jews in Montreal are facing on a daily basis,” Robertson said. “With the situation continuing to devolve, Jewish Canadians need leaders to pay more than mere lip service to antisemitism. We need all levels of government to take clear and unequivocal positions on combating this scourge of hate.”
Mayer Feig, a friend of the victim, says he is 32 years old and his three children aged nine, six, and three, were with him that day.
Police say the father sustained injuries that were not life-threatening. Feig says he has “a lot of facial bruises; he does have a broken nose and himself and the three girls are extremely traumatized from the assault.”
The SPVM says the suspect was being interviewed by investigators Monday.
Feig says he’s spoken to the victim multiple times since the incident, including following Monday’s arrest.
“There is a relief that he was arrested,” Feig said.
Feig said the suspect is not known to them and says he has heard through the community that the person seems “disturbed.”
“It still could be that this attack was due to hate because even though he might be disturbed, what triggered him to attack a Jew like that identifiably? And the fact that he threw his kippah, which is his Jewish religious head covering, at the end, into the water, for me raises some suspicion about his motive.”
Feig says police told him it took about 28 minutes to respond to the call about the incident.
“We’re still looking at why it took so long,” he said. “But after that, they did take it seriously and we appreciate the quick arrest and we hope to never have to deal with something like this again.”
The alleged incident was widely condemned by members of the political class, including Prime Minister Mark Carney and Quebec Premier François Legault.
