St. Catharines couple receives death threat from neighbour over sexual orientation

A couple from St. Catharines is speaking out to CHCH News about living in a nightmare of hate and discrimination, a nightmare that goes as far as a death threat.

Ryan and Russ Olson say they’re constantly harassed and tormented by neighbours because they are gay. They feel there’s no one on their side.

The Olson’s feel trapped in an ordeal of fear in their own house, “we have a bar that we have to put on the front door at night. We have cameras at the front and back of our place,” Ryan said.

They have caught incidents on their security cameras of neighbours shouting homophobic slurs and even one has included a threat to kill, “I’m going to f***ing kill you… swear to God I am…”

The Olsons say this began a few years ago with a neighbour holding loud parties. Other neighbours have even moved out because of the parties. The couple says a dispute between neighbours devolved into homophobia.

The couple says there’s been little help from officials and police and now they’re suing two neighbours and the landlord for $100,000 so they can afford to leave their home.

Ryan Olson says initially they wanted to stand up for the LGBTQ community and stay in their home. “Now because I haven’t been able to work in 18 months, 2 years, because of the trauma, because of the abuse, the fear because I’m ready to break down. I want to get out. I want to run,” Ryan said.

Police have confirmed they’ve been called because of a neighbour dispute multiple times and that one man was charged with uttering threats.

CHCH News spoke with a few of the neighbours who wouldn’t go on camera.

“I just want to be treated like a human and be respected. I don’t think I can get that here anymore,” Russ said.

The couple wants to escape from a community that they say turned against them.