London police are investigating a race-related incident that happened on Tuesday at a Sobeys grocery store on Adelaide Street.

It's difficult to say whether it was hate motivated, but obviously race did play a part in the incident - Const. George Demopoulos, London Police

In a video posted to social media, a man in a red T-shirt is shown preventing another man in a black hoodie from leaving the store, and calling him an "illegal alien."

"I want to leave; stop assaulting me," the man in the black hoodie says in the video.

"Don't touch him, why are you touching him?" a woman says off-camera, as the man in the red shirt approaches the man in the black hoodie.

"Prior to when the video started recording there was a previous incident between these two males," said London police Const. George Demopoulos.

"When police responded and investigated it was learned that the male in the red shirt had assaulted the male in the black shirt."

The assault did not result in any injuries, and the victim opted not to press charges. Both men left the scene peacefully, Demopolous said.

At this time, Demopolous said he could not comment on whether the incident will be counted as a hate crime.

"It's difficult to say whether it was hate motivated, but obviously race did play a part in the incident," said Demopolous, adding police officers are continuing the investigation.

CBC News has contacted the store for comment.

In the spring, a report submitted to the London Police Services Board showed a rise in reported hate crimes in the city. The report said there were 64 reported incidents in 2017, compared to 40 incidents in 2016.