Photo by The Globe and Mail via The Canadian Press.
The Toronto Police is investigating a Twitter profile that posted racist, xenophobic, and transphobic messages believed to belong to a parking enforcement officer, according to a report on Friday by the Toronto Star.The now-deleted personal account of “scottmurphy002” published racist and anti-immigrant tweets, according to the Star, which also confirmed that a man named Scott Murphy does work as a parking officer through an interview with a former parking enforcement officer, and a response from the Toronto Police Service.“Wake up people all Muslims need to be stopped from immigrating to any democratic country,” stated a Tweet from the account in February, the newspaper reported. “They come, they take advantage of all we have to offer, then try and say they’re victims.”The Toronto Police Association president told the Star the union had been informed that an officer’s private Twitter account was being probed.The account reportedly spewed other racist comments using the hashtag #BlueLivesMatter.A recent report by the Ontario Human Rights Commission found that black people are “grossly overrepresented” in fatal shootings and instances where Toronto police have used force against civilians.
The account also tweeted support for the Ontario government’s recent decision to cut financial support for some overdose prevention sites.“If you use drugs you assume the risk of overdosing. The rest of us shouldn’t be responsible because you’re an idiot,” stated a tweet.The account linked to Murphy also posted a transphobic slur after former Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne lost the election.In 2016, the Ottawa Police investigated racist comments posted by an officer regarding Indigenous peoples, and the death of a well-known Inuk artist. Sgt. Chris Hrnchiar was disciplined by the police service, and months later said he was attempting to make amends.Follow Rachel on Twitter.
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