A man accused of using a van to kill 10 pedestrians in Toronto has told police he belonged to an online community of sexually frustrated men who plot attacks against people who have sex.
Alek Minassian is facing 10 counts of first-degree murder and 16 counts of attempted murder in connection with the attack on April 23, 2018.
The 26-year-old is accused of driving a rental van into crowds of pedestrians in a busy north Toronto neighbourhood, killing eight women and two men aged between 22 and 94.
Minassion will stand trial in February but after a publication ban was lifted, a video of his interrogation by police just hours after the attack has been released, showing him describing an online community of sexually-frustrated men.
Asked by a detective how he felt about the death of 10 people, he said: “I feel like I accomplished my mission.”
Minassian, who said he had never had a girlfriend and was a virgin, admitted he used the van as a weapon and said he wanted to inspire more attacks.
“I know of several other guys over the internet who feel the same way,” he said.
The 26-year-old, who has yet to enter a plea, refers to himself as an “incel” – short for “involuntary celibate” but also used to refer to men infuriated at rejection who are looking for some kind of revenge.
The online incel movement, which sometimes refers to men and women with active sex lives as ‘Chad’ and ‘Stacy’, has been linked to the deadly attack in Toronto as well as attacks in California and Florida.
Minassian said he discussed his sexual frustrations on the website 4chan, which has become notorious as a place for extremists to post their views.