Vancouver Police are looking for three Indo-Canadian men after a possible gay hate crime in the heart of the city's gay neighbourhood.
It happened just after 1 a.m. on Friday, June 2. A 37-year-old man was walking in the 1600 block of Davie Street when three men began shouting and throwing eggs at him. One of the eggs hit him. The men also threw beer bottles.
VPD Const. Tim Fanning says although the police would not normally consider this a serious incident, they are quite concerned by the nature of the assault.
"The type of attack here, and the fact the victims is openly gay, lends itself for investigators to believe it's one of those most repulsive of crimes - possibly a hate crime," said Fanning.
Now, officers are releasing surveillance photos of the suspects, in hopes they will come forward, or someone will recognize them.
The pictures were taken at the Mac's convenience store at the corner of Davie St. and Bute St., where the three men bought eggs only minutes before the assault.
Const. Fanning says the victim can't remember the exact details of what the suspects were yelling because he is very shaken by the incident.
"He was very scared of their behaviour. He felt they were very menacing," he said.
The 37-year-old was on his way home to his West End home at the time of the assault. He called police shortly after he arrived home.
The suspects are described as being three Indo-Canadian men between the ages of 18 and 20. Police believe they fled on foot after the attack.
The neighbourhood officer for the West End, Const. Cheryl Leggett, is handling the case. Anyone with information is asked to call 604-717-3349, and dial #1456.
