The RCMP have arrested an 18-year-old man from Newmarket, Ont. after suspecting he had plans to leave Canada and join ISIS.
Police officials say that the suspect was a minor when the RCMP investigation was initially launched, making the publicly available details of the case limited, including the suspect’s identity.
However, court records revealed that the RCMP applied for a terrorism peace bond last month on the basis that he may be planning to leave Canada “to participate in the activities” of the listed terrorist group, ISIS.
The RCMP received consent for proceedings related to terrorism-related offences from the Attorney General on Dec. 19, however, no further information has been made public.
“Although the defendant is an adult now, much of the allegations occurred while he was a young person,” Nathalie Houle, a spokesperson for the Public Prosecution Service of Canada told CBC News, which first reported on the case.
The suspect was released on bail last month and is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 15.
According to the RCMP, he will face “strict court conditions” if the peace bond application is granted, which CSIS has also been involved with.
The federal prosecution service has issued terrorism peace bonds to 26 people since 2015. Terrorism peace bonds are a controversial legal tool that allows Canadian courts to impose conditions such as electronic monitoring and passport confiscation on those who they believe may commit a terrorism offence.
There has been a heightened interest in ISIS following a terrorist attack carried out by the U.S.-born ISIS supporter Shamsud-Din Jabbar in New Orleans on Wednesday, which killed at least 15 people and injured 30 more.
The Newmarket suspect marks the third high-profile RCMP investigation of terrorism involving Ontario-based men accused of being connected to ISIS-inspired attacks.
A Toronto-area man was arrested by multiple officers in tactical gear in Quebec near the U.S. border in September with plans to kill as many Jews in New York.
Muhammad Shahzeb Khan was charged for his alleged involvement in an ISIS terrorism plot after being apprehended in Ormstown, Que. while attempting to cross the border into the U.S. via Roxham Road.
Only a month before Khan’s failed terrorist plot, a father and son accused of having connections to ISIS were arrested in Toronto for allegedly planning a terrorist attack on the city’s citizens.
The duo were charged with several terrorism-related charges after the RCMP received consent from the Attorney General to commence proceedings. Other charges include conspiracy to commit murder and aggravated assault, with the latter only against the father.
Ahmed Eldidi, age 62, and Mostafa Eldidi, age 26, share a host of other charges. The two were allegedly in possession of an axe and machete when they were arrested.
