Victoria man charged after alleged assault on Imam, and downtown robberies

A Victoria man is facing multiple charges after police say he was linked to two separate violent incidents in the city’s downtown core on the same night last week, including an alleged assault on an Imam who was first to call police.

Investigators say the two incidents occurred within about an hour of each other on June 18 in the 1100-blocks of Fort Street and Douglas Street.

Imam Ebrahim Gadou told CTV News he was attacked around 10:30 p.m. near Cook Street and Fort Street after a stranger opened the driver’s side door of his vehicle, pulled him out and assaulted him before fleeing. He said he then followed the suspect until police arrived and made an arrest.

The second call to police came around 1:15 a.m. on June 19, after the suspect had already been taken into custody. In that report, a man told investigators he was assaulted and robbed in the 1100-block of Douglas Street at around 10 p.m. on June 18, and said he recognized the person responsible.

Police say they initially arrested the suspect in connection with the Fort Street incident before later linking him to the second alleged attack.

Both complainants reported minor injuries.

“Violence has no place in our communities,” Victoria police Chief Constable Fiona Wilson said in a statement.

“Random attacks like these are deeply unsettling, and they can erode the sense of safety that people should feel in their own city. We are committed to investigating the motive, and we ask the public to withhold judgment as the matter proceeds before the court.”

The BC Prosecution Service has approved four charges against Vincent Edward Abraham.

He faces charges of robbery and assault causing bodily harm in connection with the Fort Street incident, as well as robbery and assault with a weapon in relation to the Douglas Street case.

Abraham is scheduled to appear in court June 25.

Police are asking anyone with information who has not yet spoken with investigators to contact them on the non-emergency line at 250-995-7654, extension 1, and reference file number 26-24766.