Hamilton police arrest man, 41, following disturbing transphobic, homophobic rant on HSR bus

Hamilton police have arrested the man they say used homophobic and transphobic language in a disturbing video posted online.

Police have charged 41-year-old Christopher Pretula with assault and uttering threats, after investigating the situation as a hate incident.

The incident is believed to have taken place on Monday, August 1 on an HSR bus, in the area of Gage Park at the Lawrence Road entrance.

Statistics Canada says the number of police-reported hate-motivated crimes has jumped up in recent years, increasing by nearly 75 per cent between 2019 and 2021.

In Hamilton, police say the number of reported hate incidents and crimes jumped 35 per cent from 2020 to 2021.

Statistics Canada also says hate crimes targeting people based on their sexual orientation have jumped up 64% between 2019 and 2021.

Investigators are encouraging any witnesses that recorded the bus incident to come forward and contact Division 2 Criminal Investigation Division at 905-546-2930 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.