The public gallery in Ontario Superior Court was full Thursday as people waited for the jury, the lawyers and the 22-year-old to enter. The defence had argued Veltman didn't intend to kill the family, so made a case for him to be convicted of manslaughter. The 22-year-old had pleaded not guilty to murder, attempted murder and associated terror charges in the attack on the Afzaal family on June 6, 2021. First-degree murder carries an automatic sentence of life with no possibility of parole for 25 years. In the wake of the attack on a warm June 6, 2021, day, it was condemned across Canada and around the world, after police labelled it a hate crime related to anti-Muslim sentiments. Tabinda Bukhari, the mother of Madiha Salman, one of the Afzaal family members killed in June 2021 in London, speaks outside Ontario Superior Court in Windsor after the Nathaniel Veltman guilty verdict was announced Thursday. "This trial and verdict are a reminder there is still much work to be done to address hatred in all forms that lives in our communities," Bukhari added. "However, this wasn't just a crime against the Muslim community, but rather an attack against the safety and security of all Canadians. intended to instil fear and terror in our hearts," said Tabinda Bukhari, the mother of Madiha Salman. "While this verdict does not bring back our loved ones, it is a recognition by the justice system that the perpetrator of these heinous crimes.
The family expressed gratitude to everyone who supported them and showed solidarity over the last two-plus years. 'The trial and verdict are a reminder there is much more work to be done to address the hatred that exists in our society,' said Tabinda Bukhari, mother of Madiha Salman, one of the victims. Duration 4:16 A jury has found Nathaniel Veltman guilty of four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder in the truck attack on a Muslim family in London, Ont., in 2021.