A restaurant owner in Uptown Waterloo says his business has been repeatedly targeted by vandals. Soumya Dutta Roy is the owner of Land of River Delta (LORD), an Indian restaurant on Regina Street, which has been hit several times since opening its doors about four months ago. The latest incident was caught on camera late Sunday night. In the security video, a masked person can be seen throwing eggs at the restaurant’s front entrance. Dutta Roy said the vandalism has been happening as often as twice a week. “They keep throwing eggs on my car,” he explained. “They have destroyed all of these patio lights.” While Dutta Roy does not know who is behind these incidents, he believes it may be racially-motivated. Originally from India, Dutta Roy moved to Canada more than a decade ago and said opening a restaurant was his longtime dream. “I have never experienced this kind of issues before. This is the very first time. I’m sad… I’m scared about my family, about my business.” Dutta Roy also worries the vandalism could escalate into violence. “Maybe next time he will break the window,” he said. “Maybe he will enter with some weapon and attack us.” Dutta Roy has filed a report with Waterloo Regional Police, who confirmed they were aware and investigating the vandalism. They also asked anyone with information to reach out to police. Despite his concerns, Dutta Roy said he would be willing to sit down and speak with whoever is responsible. “Discussion is better than attacking,” he explained. “He can come to me. I can talk with him. We can sit together and eat some of our restaurant food and discuss about what is this problem and try to address it.” Dutta Roy remains hopeful but is also realistic about what it could mean for his business. “I have invested my everything to open this restaurant. Now if I have to close it because of some nuisance, that would be very painful.”
