Three weeks after a Muslim family was killed in a hit-and-run police have called deliberate, the man accused in the attack has officially hired a lawyer to represent him.
Nathaniel Veltman made his fifth appearance in London court on Monday. Appearing by way of video from the Elgin Middlesex Detention Centre, Veltman said very little other than to name Toronto defence lawyer Christopher Hicks as his legal counsel. Hicks previously represented one of the six men convicted of first degree murder in 2009 in the notorious Bandidos murders.
The court appearance lasted only four minutes and was dominated with discussion over how long it would take the defence to review initial disclosure of evidence from the Crown.
"The hope is that Mr. Hicks will receive disclosure by July 23 at the latest," said Assistant Crown attorney Jennifer Moser.
She went on to state that the Crown wants to allow Hicks time for "meaningful review of disclosure he is receiving" before the matter returns to court.
As a result the case was put over until July 29.
Veltman, 20, is charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder in relation to the June 6 attack on the Afzaal family. Prosecutors allege the deadly hit-and-run constitutes an act of terrorism.
London police have said there is evidence the attack was a planned, premeditated act, motivated by hate.
Salman Afzaal, 46, his wife Madiha Salman, 44, their 15-year-old daughter Yumna Afzaal and 9-year-old son Fayez Salman, and Salman Afzaal’s 74-year-old mother Talat Afzaal were out for an evening walk when a pickup truck mounted the curb at Hyde Park and South Carriage roads and hit them before speeding off. Fayez Salman was the lone survivor of the attack.
Veltman was arrested shortly after the family was struck, roughly seven kilometers from the collision scene.
There is a publication ban on the evidence presented in the case.
The attack led to an outpouring of support for the Muslim community with a vigil at the London Muslim Mosque in the days that followed attended by an estimated 10,000 people including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ontario Premier Doug Ford. There have also been calls for a national action summit on Islamophobia. On Friday, London Mayor Ed Holder and his counterpart from Quebec City, Régis Labeaume, sent a joint letter to Trudeau in support of the summit.
The two mayors wrote that they “look forward to playing an active role in this work, while ensuring those who have been most directly impacted are provided ample consideration and space to lead.”
