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Police investigate after hateful graffiti sprayed on Brampton plaza

This graffiti was found spray painted at a plaza in Brampton this week. (Grant Linton/CBC - image credit)
This graffiti was found spray painted at a plaza in Brampton this week. (Grant Linton/CBC - image credit)

Peel Regional Police are investigating after hateful graffiti was found sprayed on a plaza in Brampton this week.

In an email to CBC News on Friday, police said an officer was investigating on site at 5 Cherrycrest Dr., where slurs, swastikas and the phrase "soy boy" could be seen sprayed on businesses at the plaza.

In a tweet Friday, Premier Doug Ford condemned the graffiti, saying it happened at Khalsa Montessori School, which is located on the second floor of the plaza.

The school's principal told CBC News he didn't think the school was specifically targeted.

The graffiti is largely on the ground floor and on overnight shutters for the Hasty Market at the location, said principal Harpreet Singh.

"I don't think it's targeting our school," Singh said.

Still, he said, seeing hateful messages like these was "very jarring" for young children and their families heading to the school.

"So we had to address it," he said, adding that administrators have had discussions with students about hate and racism.

"It's shocking that we're seeing this hate crime," he said. "I strongly believe that police need to get to the bottom of that."

Police have not said whether the incident is being probed as a hate crime.