The Toronto Police Services have unmasked and arrested a Toronto man who frequents anti-Israel protests dressed as a Marxist-Leninist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terrorist for allegedly breaching the peace by stomping on an Israeli flag.
According to a TPS report, 40-year-old David Shultz was arrested at an anti-Israel counter-protest at Bathurst Street and Sheppard Avenue West, a Jewish neighbourhood. Police allege the man dressed in what appears to be PFLP attire refused to stop dragging and stomping on an Israeli flag across the street from a “large” pro-Israel crowd.
Police said they cautioned the man that his actions were causing a disturbance and breach of the peace. In a video posted of the event, Shultz refuses the order, saying it’s his right to do so when he is placed under arrest.
Shultz faces a charge of obstructing a peace officer and is scheduled to appear at the Ontario Court of Justice on Jan. 3, 2025.
In a video shared by X user “Leviathan,” Shultz can be seen wearing a red headband in the style of the listed terrorist entity, the PFLP. However, the headband says “Freedom, Peace, Equality, Justice” in Arabic. On his armoured vest, an inverted red triangle is displayed, a symbol used in Hamas propaganda videos to indicate Israeli targets before firing upon them.
“’I’m doing this because this is what I feel about this country. Israel deserves this treatment,” Shultz said to police. “This is how much respect I have for (Israel) I’m expressing myself. I’m using my rights; if you have to arrest me, then arrest me.”
As indicated in the post, the incident occurred before Rebel News journalist David Menzies was arrested for covering the protest. After trying to walk through the anti-Israel protest crowd, Menzies was swarmed and later taken away by police, who arrested him.
“Leviathan” also questioned a photo taken at the protest, claiming the positioning of Shultz’s arm looked like a Nazi salute, though that cannot be confirmed based on the photo alone.
Shultz also appeared in another anti-Israel protest and was seen standing guard dressed as a PFLP terrorist while protesters yelled anti-Israel chants through megaphones in the Toronto Metropolitan University lobby.
He was also reportedly seen protesting at the University of Toronto when Shai Davidai, a recently barred Jewish professor at New York’s Columbia University, held a rally against antisemitism.
Though Shultz’s main X account has been made private, One X user screenshotted posts from his account beforehand.
He called for the assassination of Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, the “elimination” of Israel, and claimed that the Israeli Defence Forces were the ones who carried out the Hamas-led terrorist attack on Oct. 7.
In response to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calling a violent pogrom targeting Jews in Amsterdam last week “horrifying,” Shultz said that Trudeau doesn’t speak for him or Canada.
“(Trudeau) is an unprincipled cretin. He has supported genocide to the full extent of his ability of the indigenous people of Turtle Island and the Indigenous people of Palestine,” he said.
A group called Jew Hate Database claims that one of Schultz’s aliases online is “Kevin Laser” due to photos posted by him on the site.
The X account associated with “Kevin Laser” has a propaganda poster featuring the recently eliminated Hamas leader Yayah Sinwar, with an inverted red triangle captioned by the rallying cry, “Do not expect justice but be justice.”
Another post shows various photos of Israelis, including Netanyahu, where some individuals are marked as killed, and the caption of the post says, “Nazi lives don’t matter,” implying the Jews are Nazis.
According to another post by the user on Oct. 31, he claims he has been arrested twice but had been released both times without charges.
TPS asks anyone with information about the individual to contact police at 416-222-TIPS (8477) or online at 222tips.com.