Ukrainian man threatened with knife at Calgary grocery store, police seek suspect

Calgary police are working to identifying a harassment suspect. (CPS handout)

Calgary police are working to identifying a suspect who allegedly threatened and harassed a Ukrainian man at a southeast grocery store.

The incident happened at the T & T Supermarket on Heritage Meadows Way S.E. at 11:30 a.m. on Dec. 31, 2024.

Police say it’s believed the suspect overheard the victim speaking Ukrainian on the phone.

• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App

It’s alleged he then approached the victim and began verbally harassing and threatening him while inside the store.

The victim left the supermarket, at which point it’s alleged the suspect got a knife from his truck and approached the victim again, threatening to physically harm him, making references to the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

Police say the victim wasn’t injured and the suspect left before officers arrived.

On Monday, police released CCTV photos of the suspect.

He is described as being in his 50s, wearing blue jeans, a dark jacket and a baseball cap with Russian symbols on it.

He was driving a black or dark blue Nissan Frontier with a detachable Russian flag clipped to the driver-side door.

“Any evidence of a hate motivation is considered by the courts after a person is found guilty of the connected crime,” police said in a news release. “If the judge decides during sentencing that hate was a motivation for the offence, it is an aggravating factor that can add to the convicted person’s sentence.”

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call police at 403-266-1234.

Tips can also be sent anonymously through Crime Stoppers.