WARMINGTON: ‘King’ restored to former glory after quick arrest by cops in graffiti case

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You mess with “The King” and you just might find yourself in his court.

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And quickly.

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That could be what Matthew Doyle, 41, of Toronto found out Monday when Toronto Police came knocking to charge him with five counts of mischief after allegedly “spray-painting graffiti on multiple City of Toronto properties, including the Al Waxman Statue.”

Toronto Police said one count is suspected to be “hate-motivated related” for allegedly painting “vote Hamas” on the statue of the King of Kensington star in Bellevue Park.

Const. Sinderela Chung and Det. Pasquale Alberga said the Toronto Police hate crime unit “investigated the incidents and identified the accused.”

None of the charges have been tested in court and Doyle is considered innocent until proven guilty. He made his first appearance there on Tuesday. Needless to say, the quick arrest is some impressive police work.

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“It’s stellar policing,” said Waxman’s son Adam, who on behalf of his mother Sara and the rest of the Waxman family added that they are “grateful to the Toronto Police for getting the job done.”

It’s extra special because even though Waxman was known for playing Larry King in the King of Kensington, he was also famous for playing police officers on TV, including on the American detective show Cagney and Lacey.

It also turns out Waxman was once an honourary Toronto Police chief.

“My dad had great respect for the Toronto Police department,” said Adam. “Recent examples of how effective they are in apprehending those who disturb the peace are world class. Racism in our city cannot be tolerated.”

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He’s right. Police have been on top of this. They have made many arrests in copious amounts of alleged anti-Semitic attacks, from coffee shops to the Indigo 11 bookstore bust.

On Monday, they also announced the arrest of Michael Park, 35, of Toronto for three charges of mischief under $5,000, obstructing a peace officer and failing to comply probation order after they alleged that “the accused provided false identification upon arrest.” He is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday.

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This was not the first time Park has been charged as part of investigations into anti-Semitism — something that Jewish groups were expressing deep concern over Tuesday.

“Our organization is grateful for the diligent action undertaken by the Toronto Police to charge two of the individuals (allegedly) responsible for the recent spate of vile anti-Semitic graffiti occurring in the city,” said B’nai Brith director of research Richard Robertson.

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While the charges against Park have not been proven in court, this is the third time in the past three years he has been arrested for similar allegations. In fact the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) started expressing concern over this individual as far back as 2021, when they posted a photograph of the accused allegedly sporting a swastika painted on his chest — an allegation he was charged for by Toronto Police, as covered at the time by the CBC and Global News.

As of Tuesday evening, the Attorney General of Ontario had not commented on his current or previous charges and he is considered innocent until proven guilty. That said, there was much relief that he and the suspect in the Waxman statue case are now before the courts.

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“These arrests show that anti-Semitism will not be ignored or tolerated; those who sow and perpetrate hate will be held accountable,” said Nicole Amiel, CIJA’s director of media relations and GTA communications, who added serious consequences would “send a strong message of deterrence to any future hate-mongers.”

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Time will tell.

But you have to give credit where credit is due and the Toronto Police and its hate crimes unit have done an outstanding job making arrests. And credit to the City of Toronto, who got the Waxman statue cleaned up on Tuesday as well.

“The King” is back to his full glory again in Kensington Market.

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