Staff at Ivy Nails and Spa were trying to get back to business Wednesday after reopening, but an ugly reminder of the COVID-19 pandemic lingered.
“Some people smashing, and broken my window,” said Ivy Nails & Spa Co-owner Chanseok “Brian” Yoon.
Vandals smashed the front door for a second time in days at the Parksville Salon and many fear anti-Asian racism was behind it, as not a single other business in the area of Morison Avenue was hit.
“That’s sick,” said client Doreen Mordentoft.
“If they were after money or something I could see it but there’s none here.”
“It’s disgusting that anybody would do it,” said Parksville resident Judy Elliott.
Yoon, who moved to Parksville from South Korea, said the door was first smashed on Wednesday. It was repaired and then broken into pieces again on Saturday.
“I have no idea. Just why [it] happened to only my store,” said Yoon.
“Only [in] my store people broke things,” said Yoon.
“I feel badly that you had that done, not just once but twice,” said Elliott to Yoon.
“It’s not fair.”
When Elliott found out about the crime, she stopped by Wednesday to say sorry for the behaviour of someone else.
“I’m giving him a social distance hug,” said Elliott.
“In our own backyard, it’s not right.”
According to RCMP, there’s no evidence it was a racist attack, but with growing anti-Asian vandalism in the wake of COVID-19, investigators aren’t ruling it out either and are still looking for a suspect.
“This is so bad when this is happening,” said Mordentoft.
“What difference does it make, the colour of someone’s skin.”
BC Premier John Horgan spoke out against the crime in Wednesday’s address.
“It’s absolutely reprehensible that a business would be isolated Because of the ethnicity of the people who operate it,” said Horgan.
it’s just not acceptable in British Columbia and if those perpetrators are caught they can expect the full force of the law to come down upon them,” said the Premier.
Security cameras are now installed should the vandals come back.
Skye Ryan
