NYC man charged in Toronto machete attack

TORONTO (AP) – A New York City man was charged with attempted murder in a machete attack in downtown Toronto on the busiest shopping day of the holiday season, police said Thursday.

Arlington Thompson, 35, appeared briefly in court and was remanded into custody, with another hearing set for Dec. 30. He also was charged with aggravated assault, assault with a weapon and possession of a dangerous weapon.

Police said the attack against a 30-year-old man occurred Wednesday evening near the Eaton Centre, Canada’s largest retail mall. The victim suffered serious injuries to his head and leg.

Police said they do not yet have a motive behind the attack, which they believe was unprovoked.

Paragon Security, which handles security for a shopping center across the street from the mall, released a video of the attack and the response by security guards Nate McNeil and Phillip Bonaparte.

The video shows a man swinging a large machete at a man who falls to the ground and tries to protect himself with a bag.

The man with the machete swipes at someone else before briefly chasing after the victim, yelling, before McNeil tackles him.

“I just wanted to stop what he was doing,” McNeil told a news conference Thursday.

In the video, Bonaparte then kicks away a hunting knife the attacker has dropped and pries away the machete. They restrain the man until police arrive.