Ottawa man charged with attempted murder, assault after apparent racially motivated attacks
Kevin Belisle, 32, charged in connection to a series of assaults on Nov. 17
An Ottawa man is facing one charge of attempted murder and several assault charges for a series of apparent hate-motivated attacks in Ottawa's Centretown and Chinatown neighbourhoods earlier this month.
Kevin Belisle, 32, is charged in connection to several assaults against victims of Asian descent on Nov. 17.
In a news release, the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) said officers responded to three separate calls that day between 8:45 p.m. and 10:15 p.m. on Laurier Avenue W., Bronson Avenue and Bank Street.
Two of the victims sustained minor injuries while the third victim sustained serious injuries and was transported to hospital. All three victims were of Asian descent, OPS said.
On Nov. 18, police charged Belisle with two counts of assault, one count of aggravated assault and one count of mischief.
One additional victim later came forward, OPS said. On Nov. 26, police laid further charges against Belisle in connection to the Nov. 17 assaults.
Belisle is now also facing one charge of attempted murder and another three charges of assault causing bodily harm. The total number of alleged victims is four.
Charged in earlier incident
Belisle was previously charged last March. At approximately 5:30 p.m. on March 11, 2023, a man began yelling anti-Asian slurs at a woman walking on the 1100 block of Wellington Street before assaulting her, police said.
Belisle was charged in connection to the assault later that month. He was convicted of robbery at the same time, and was sentenced to 120 days of time served with 18 months of probation.
He is expected back in court Thursday for a bail hearing.