EDMONTON—The woman who was caught on video shouting xenophobic comments at a Southern Alberta restaurant was fired from her job after the video went viral on social media Wednesday.

Dave Girling, owner of Cranbrook Dodge, an auto dealership in Cranbrook, B.C., identified the woman in the video as former employee Kelly Pocha.

A statement posted to the Cranbrook Dodge Facebook page said the dealership is an inclusive company that has no room for hate or intolerance.

“We have recently become aware of a disturbing video that involves one of our employees,” the statement read. “We are deeply concerned about the content of this video and want all of our friends, families, colleagues and customers to know that this behaviour does not reflect the values of Cranbrook Dodge in any way.

“The employee in question has been terminated and we deeply apologize for her actions.”

The video, posted to Facebook on Tuesday night, appears to show Pocha repeatedly telling a group of men in a Lethbridge, Alta., restaurant they are “not Canadian.”

A Facebook user named Monir Omerzai posted the video, which is just over five minutes long, to Facebook. As of Wednesday afternoon, the video had 370,000 views and was shared about 7,600 times.

The video shows Pocha, who was seated in an adjacent booth, turning around to shout at a group of at least three men, one of whom was recording the incident.

At one point, Pocha rose onto her knees in her seat and threatened to hit one of the men sitting in front of her.

“Because you know what? You’re dealing with a Canadian woman right now, and I will leap across this table and punch you right in your f-----g mouth.”

She repeatedly told one of the men at the table that they were not Canadian citizens.

“Do you pay taxes, my friend?” the woman asked one of the men seated at the table.

“We all pay taxes,” he replied.

When one of the men in the video tried to tell her that “We are all Canadian,” the woman angrily pointed at them and replied: “No, you are not Canadian.”

One of the men asked to her not to tell him what to do, and she continued:

“You’re not dealing with one of your Syrian b-----s right. You’re dealing with a Canadian woman, and I’m not going to be talked down to by you.”

When one of the men out of frame laughed at the comment, the woman pointed in their direction and criticized them.

“You laugh all you want. You know what? That’s a prime example of why we don’t want you here.”

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Omerzai, a 26 year-old resident of Lethbridge, says he was shocked at the woman’s behaviour as he had never experienced anything like that in the 13 years he had been in the country.

“I have never seen such discrimination against me. I’ve never seen somebody hating so much for no reason,” he said. “I felt horrible at the time.”

“I came to this country. I started from the bottom and working hard towards everything and she is (asking) me if I pay taxes,” he said. Omerzai owns his own car dealership in Lethbridge.

Omerzai confirmed the police did arrive that night but told them that there was nothing they could do.

On Wednesday afternoon Lethbridge police released a statement confirming they’d responded to a disturbance at the Denny’s on April 21. According to the statement, when officers arrived restaurant staff had already seperated the two groups.

“After consultation with police, restaurant staff made the decision to exercise their right to refuse service to both groups and asked that they leave,” the statement said.

Police continue to investigate and say there had been no further outreach from either group until the video went online.

Omerzai said at first he did not want to post the video, but could not get the incident out of his mind.

“It just, the thinking this whole time that she was telling me to go back to my country ... Those things were coming to my head and yesterday after talking to friends I posted the video to Facebook,” he said.

A person who answered the phone at the Lethbridge Denny’s on Mayor Magrath Drive confirmed he was an employee and said the incident happened last month.

He added, “We do not tolerate this kind of behaviour at Denny’s, so when management found out, they called the police.”

In response to the video, Lethbridge mayor Chris Spearman posted a statement on Facebook indicating the video is not reflective of all Lethbridge residents.

“I am embarrassed to learn that this incident happened in Lethbridge,” Spearman said. “We are working hard to address racism and bigotry but can not prevent ignorance and the hostile behaviour of individuals.”

Omerzai says he really appreciates all the “love and support” he has been receiving from people ever since the video blew up.

“I mean that’s how Canada is supposed to be. And that’s how people need to treat one another. With respect and with dignity,” he said.

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