KINGSTON, Ont. - Police in Ontario are investigating after a Sir John A. MacDonald statue was vandalized overnight, saying it may have been politically motivated.
The sculpture, located in a park in Kingston, Ont., was splattered with red paint and the words "This is stolen land," "murderer" and "colonizer" were sprayed on the statue's base.
Kingston police Const. Steve Koopman says city crews are working to clean the monument and an event at the statue site to mark the former prime minister's 198th birthday will continue as planned.
Koopman says a forensics officer is on the scene gathering evidence and that police intend to speak to nearby residents for information on who attacked the statue.
He says police are not ruling out a possible link with an Idle No More protest occurring in Kingston today, but that they currently have no evidence the two are connected.
Koopman says the defacement could be part of an effort to smear the aboriginal movement.
"It would look to be a political statement but at the same time people might be seeking that for political purposes," he said.
"We're going to be cautious as to what the motive is at this point."
