Photo: CTV News
The Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC), UCC British Columbia Provincial Council, and UCC Victoria Branch issued the following statement:
In the middle of the night of April 19-20, Father Yuriy Vyshnevskyy, pastor of the St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church, and his family were attacked in their home. Gasoline was poured through the mail slot and the home was set ablaze. The family’s three daughters had to jump from the second floor.
One of the daughters, 11 years old, suffered injuries, had to have surgery and is recovering. Our thoughts are with Father Vyshnevskyy and his family during this difficult time. We stand ready to offer any assistance that we can.
We call on law enforcement to fully, promptly and thoroughly investigate this heinous crime against five innocent people. Given that Father Vyshnevskyy is a dedicated community leader who through his work is strongly supporting the Ukrainian people and their defence of their homeland from Russia’s genocidal war, we call on local authorities to investigate this attack as a hate crime.
More information from CTV News is available here:
Victoria arson investigation underway after gas poured into home while family of 5 slept
