On 24 February 2020, a misogynistic terrorist attack took place in an erotic spa in

Toronto, Canada Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

. A 17-year-old youth fatally attacked a woman with a machete before being restrained by the owner of the spa, who was also injured. The perpetrator's motive was later revealed to be misogynistic

incel Incel ( ; a portmanteau of "involuntary celibate") is a term associated with an online subculture of mostly male and heterosexual people who define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one. They ofte ...

ideology. He was sentenced to life imprisonment with no chance of parole for 10 years.

Attack

Surveillance video showed the perpetrator leaving his home by foot towards the Crown Spa, which was less than two kilometres from his home. At the spa he drew a 17-inch sword and killed receptionist Ashley Arzaga. The sword was engraved with the words "thot slayer" (thot is a

slang A slang is a vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in everyday conversation but avoided in formal writing and speech. It also often refers to the language exclusively used by the members of pa ...

word for a sexually promiscuous woman, similar to "

whore Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...

.") The owner of the spa observed the attack and was set upon by the perpetrator. As the owner and the perpetrator struggled on the floor, the owner disarmed the perpetrator and stabbed him in the back, critically injuring him. During the attack, the perpetrator shouted misogynistic expletives. The owner of the spa suffered serious injuries to her arm and finger.

Victims

Emergency crews were called to the spa after reports of a bleeding man and woman outside. They were taken to hospital with serious injuries. Inside the spa, a woman was found dead. She was later identified as 24-year-old Ashley Noell Arzaga. She was described by friends as a doting mother to a five-year-old girl.

Perpetrator

The 17-year-old perpetrator was arrested and charged with

first degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

and

attempted murder Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions. Canada Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seve ...

. The ''

Youth Criminal Justice Act The ''Youth Criminal Justice Act'' (YCJA; ) is a federal Canadian statute that covers the prosecution of youths for criminal offences. Coming into effect on April 1, 2003, the Act replaced the '' Young Offenders Act'', which itself was a repl ...

'' initially prevented him from being named because of his age, but this was later revoked when he was convicted of terrorism. Multiple media sources identified him as Oguzhan Sert, born in Canada to a

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

mother and Turkish father. He was later diagnosed with depression, anxiety, and

autism spectrum disorder Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing di ...

. A note was found on the perpetrator which read "Long Live the Incel Rebellion." The perpetrator told paramedics that he had come to the spa to kill everyone inside the building and that he was glad to have killed one person. A forensic search of the perpetrator's computer found web searches related to incels and images of

Alek Minassian A vehicle-ramming attack occurred on April 23, 2018, when a rented van was driven along Yonge Street through the North York City Centre business district in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The driver, 25-year-old Alek Minassian, targeted pedestri ...

(who he called an "inspiration") and

Elliot Rodger Elliot Oliver Robertson Rodger (July 24, 1991 – May 23, 2014) was a British and American mass murderer who is known for killing six people and injuring fourteen others during the 2014 Isla Vista killings. The murders he committed, his suicid ...

. The perpetrator's profile on

Steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...

stated that he was a "Proud Incel." When asked by police why he identified as an incel, the perpetrator stated: "You don't choose to become an incel. You are born one." Although he admitted to responding paramedics that he wished to kill everyone at the spa, he expressed satisfaction at having killed one person.

Legal proceedings

In May 2020, the charges were upgraded to "murder -

terrorist Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

activity" and "attempted murder - terrorist activity". In a joint statement, the

Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

and

Toronto Police Service The Toronto Police Service (TPS) is a municipal police force in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and the primary agency responsible for providing law enforcement and policing services in Toronto. Established in 1834, it was the first local police se ...

announced that investigations had determined that the attack "was inspired by the Ideologically Motivated Violent Extremist (IMVE) movement commonly known as INCEL".

Incel Incel ( ; a portmanteau of "involuntary celibate") is a term associated with an online subculture of mostly male and heterosexual people who define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner despite desiring one. They ofte ...

s are members of a misogynistic online subculture that define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual partner. The RCMP and TPS also said: "As a result, federal and provincial Attorneys General have consented to commence terrorism proceedings, alleging that the murder was terrorist activity ... and the attempted murder was terrorist activity." This was the first time in Canada that someone was charged with terrorism because of a misogynist ideology. On September 14, 2022, the perpetrator entered a guilty plea to murder and attempted murder. During his sentencing, he expressed regret, claiming that "it wasn't worth it". The attack was ruled a terrorist attack during sentencing proceedings. On November 28, 2023, the perpetrator was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 10 years. Additionally, a concurrent three-year sentence was imposed for attempted murder.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toronto machete attack, 2020 2020 in Toronto February 2020 in Canada Incel-related violence Terrorist incidents in Canada in the 2020s Violence in Toronto Violence against women in Ontario Incidents of violence against women Stabbing attacks in 2020 Terrorist incidents involving knife attacks in North America Femicide 2020 murders in Canada February 2020 crimes in North America

Attack

Victims

Perpetrator

Legal proceedings

See also

References