‘Threatening and hateful’ online messages lead to charges against Mississauga university student

A University of Toronto Mississauga student has reportedly been charged by police and banned from all University of Toronto campuses after “threatening and hateful” messages in relation to the school community were posted to social media.

In a message to the UTM community from UTM vice-president and principal Alexandra Gillespie posted to the school’s website Sunday night, it was noted that Campus Safety officials were made aware over the weekend “of threatening and hateful messages in relation to the UTM community that had been posted to a social media platform.”

Gillespie wrote in the “community safety update” that campus officials “responded quickly, notified Peel Regional Police and reported the incident.”

The UTM official added that police subsequently arrested and charged a UTM student.

The student was released with conditions that include not attending any U of T campus or property, Gillespie continued.

While UTM didn’t say what group or groups of people were the target of the “threatening and hateful” messages, the university did state its policy with respect to such messages.

“Antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism, hate and discrimination of any kind have no place on our campus,” Gillespie wrote. “We all play a role in keeping our campus a safe and welcoming place, and we encourage anyone who is made aware of concerning behaviours or messages to immediately contact Campus Safety and/or Peel Regional Police.”

The message from the UTM vice-president and principal also noted that, moving forward, there will be an “increased security presence on campus.”

Peel Regional Police have not yet provided any information with respect to the specific charge or charges that have been laid.

Police forces in Peel and across the GTA have been on heightened alert for any violence or violent protests in the wake of a surprise attack on Oct. 7 by Hamas against Israel that killed hundreds.

The continued fighting since then has reverberated around the globe.