Man, 19, arrested in Ontario after threats to shoot up synagogue: police - National Post
A Whitby man was arrested after police were alerted to threats posted online about shooting a synagogue. Photo by Chris Doucette/Toronto SunArticle contentA 19-year-old man in Durham Region was arrested for threatening to shoot a synagogue. He was charged just a day before a gunman opened fire outside Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville, Ont., injuring Const. Jeff Smith stationed outside.
Alexander Parfitt, a resident of Whitby, is accused of posting about carrying out a shooting on an online message board, according to Durham Regional Police. Officers received information about the threats from a law enforcement partner.
Police were able to identify the user and executed a search warrant at the man’s Whitby home on Sept. 19.
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He was charged with threats motivated by hate.
The shooting in Belleville, roughly 140 kilometres west of Whitby, took place around 7 p.m. on Sunday evening, when a 29-year-old suspect Sean Ward fired shots at the synagogue.
Bullet holes are be seen on the stained glass of the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville, Ont., after a shooting that left a police officer injured on Sept. 20. Photo by Courtesy of Doug LobelArticle contentAt the time, there were roughly 25 congregants inside the building for evening prayers on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year for the Jewish community. None of the congregants were injured. Smith was rushed to Kingston General Hospital where he remains in critical but stable condition.
Meanwhile, the suspect is in life-threatening condition.
Multiple police and ambulance vehicles are shown Sunday, Sept. 20 responding to a reported shooting in Belleville. Photo by Derek Baldwin/Belleville Intelligencer/PostmediaArticle contentDurham police said it had increased patrol during the Jewish high holidays at community centres and places of worship.
Synagogues across Canada have become the target of antisemitic attacks.
In January, a synagogue in Winnipeg was graffitied with swastikas. In March, three synagogues in the Greater Toronto Area were hit with bullets. In June, a suspect was arrested after an attempted arson at a synagogue in Montreal.
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