iN VIDEO: Spitting incident at Vancouver coffee shop possible hate crime

A woman allegedly spat on a man in Vancouver because she apparently didn’t like the language he was speaking.

Vancouver police are investigating the incident as a possible hate crime, according to a media release issued Friday, April 14.

Police say the woman initially engaged with a group of men in a westside coffee shop in friendly conversation in February, asking them what language they were speaking.

“When one of the men told her they were speaking Arabic, the woman allegedly made a racial comment, poured coffee on their table and walked out,” VPD Const. Tania Visintin said in the release. “She returned later, walked up to the same group, and spat in the victim’s face.”

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Police have release an image and video of the suspect in hopes of identifying her. Anybody who can help the investigation is asked to call Vancouver police at 604-717-4021.

“This kind of assault is humiliating and degrading,” Visintin said. “Every indication is that the victim was singled out because of his language and ethnicity.”

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