Canada: Indian-origin man arrested for multiple break-ins and thefts at Hindu temples in Ontario

Police have arrested an Indian-origin individual in reference to a sequence of burglaries that occurred at Hindu temples in Ontario province of Canada.

The arrested individual was recognized as Jagdish Pandher.

Durham Regional Police Service stated in an announcement on Thursday (December 28, 2023), “Although these offences occurred at locations of worship, they don’t seem like hate crimes or motivated by hate.”

Police stated on October 8 its personnel responded to studies of a break-and-enter in progress at a Hindu temple in the realm of Bayly Street and Krosno Boulevard in Pickering.

“A male was seen on safety surveillance breaking into the temple and taking a big amount of money from the donation packing containers,” police stated.

“The male fled the realm previous to police arrival. The male was seen on surveillance footage later that morning committing further break-and-enters at Hindu temples in Pickering and Ajax,” learn the assertion.

Investigators have linked the identical suspect to quite a few different break-and-enters at Hindu temples all year long.

These break-and-enters occurred in Durham Region and across the Greater Toronto Area.