The Toronto Police Service has announced the arrest of a suspected hate-motivated threatening woman, Amaka Sonnberger, who hails from South Eastern Nigeria.
Recall that Sonnberger had threatened to kill some Yorubas and people from Benin living in the country.
The police said it received a call for a threatening incident on Wednesday August 28, 2024.
This was contained in a statement released on Sunday by Constable Laura Brabant, Media Relations Officer, Corporate Communications of Toronto Police Service.
It was alleged that the accused posted online content on or about August 25, 2024 threatening death to specific members of the Nigerian community.
On Sunday, September 1, 2024, Toronto Police arrested Amaka Sonnberger, 46, of Toronto.
She has been charged with:
Uttering Threats
She is scheduled to appear at the Ontario Court of Justice, 2201 Finch Avenue West on Monday, September 2nd, 2024, at 10:00am in courtroom 107.
This investigation is reportedly being treated as a suspected hate-motivated offence.
“When suspected hate-motivated offences are reported to police, the investigation could be led by a Divisional investigator with the support of the Hate Crime Unit (HCU), or in some cases, will be investigated exclusively by the HCU.
“If it is alleged a criminal offence was committed (such as assault or mischief) and it is believed to have been motivated by bias, prejudice or hate, the officer-in-charge may consult with the Crown. If a person is charged and convicted of the offence, the Judge will take into consideration hate as an aggravating factor when imposing a sentence.
“Wilful promotion of hatred and advocating genocide are hate propaganda (hate speech) offences which require the Attorney General’s consent to lay charges. These charges are often laid at a later time,” the statement read.
