Jurors at the trial of a man accused of murdering four members of a Muslim family in Ontario are set to hear from new witnesses and watch more footage today of him at a police station after his arrest.
Nathaniel Veltman is accused of deliberately hitting five members of the Afzaal family with his truck while they were out for a walk in London, Ont.
Prosecutors have alleged his actions in June 2021 amount to an act of terrorism and have argued he was motivated by white nationalist beliefs.
Veltman, 22, has pleaded not guilty to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder.
Jurors began watching footage yesterday of him being held at a police station after his arrest.
Veltman is seen pacing around and occasionally sitting in a detention cell, before being taken to a different cell where he is seen walking around and eventually lying down in the hours after the attack.
Jurors began watching footage on Wednesday of Veltman arriving at police headquarters in London shortly after the attack.
Crown lawyer Sarah Shaikh told jurors in her opening statement earlier this week that Veltman allegedly planned his attack for three months.
She said Veltman told detectives that his intentions were political, he’d left his home on the day of the attack looking for Muslims to kill and that he’d used a truck to send a message to others that vehicles can be used to attack Muslims.
Salman Afzaal, 46, his 44-year-old wife Madiha Salman, their 15-year-old daughter Yumna and her 74-year-old grandmother, Talat Afzaal, were killed in the London attack. The couple’s nine-year-old son was also seriously hurt but survived.
The trial, which is taking place in Windsor, Ont., is expected to last eight weeks.
© 2023 The Canadian Press
