Pride flag burned at Markham school, 2 suspects facing charges

Rainbow Flag consists of six stripes, with the colours red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet

York police say two suspects are facing charges in a potentially hate-motivated incident that saw a Markham school’s Pride flag burned.

Officers responded to the school located near Yonge Street and Clark Avenue in Markham on Tuesday for reports that the flag had been burned. The school was not named by police.

Investigators determined that two suspects attended the school a day earlier at approximately 11 p.m. and removed the flag from its holder, ripped it, and attempted to set it on fire.

Two 18-year-old suspects, identified as Sepehr Abadar and Mahan Mohammad Radmard, both of Markham, have each been charged with mischief under $5,000.

Police said they believe the incident was hate-motivated. In an email to CTV News, they confirmed that the suspects are former students of the school.

“York Regional Police takes all hate-motivated incidents seriously and will not tolerate any form of hate crime,” they said.

June is Pride month, and many schools in the Greater Toronto Area fly Pride flags in celebration.

Police are asking anyone with information about the incident to contact them at 1-866-876-5423, ext. 6552 or Crime Stoppers anonymously.