A Toronto-area man is facing a terror charge in the United States, U.S. authorities say, for allegedly attempting to enter the country to carry out a mass shooting at a Jewish Centre in New York City.
A news release issued Friday afternoon by the U.S. Department of Justice identified the accused in the case as 20-year-old Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, who investigators say also goes by Shahzeb Jadoon. He was described in the release as a Pakistani citizen residing in Canada.
Khan now faces a charge of attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, namely ISIS. He was arrested in the town of Ormstown, Que., roughly about 60 kilometres south of Montreal.
“The defendant is alleged to have planned a terrorist attack in New York City around October 7th of this year with the stated goal of slaughtering, in the name of ISIS, as many Jewish people as possible,” said U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland, in a statement.
“Thanks to the investigative work of the FBI, and the quick action of our Canadian law enforcement partners, the defendant was taken into custody.
Canadian investigators have not yet publicly issued any information about the arrest. Three other people were also detained as part of the investigation, sources say.
Khan is believed to have been heading toward Roxham Road with the intention of illegally entering the United States, sources say, when he was arrested around 5 p.m. near the intersection of Gale and Church streets.
Ormstown resident Elizabeth Henshaw told Radio-Canada that she came home Wednesday to find dozens of police officers outside her home with a man handcuffed on her front lawn and a woman in cuffs on her front porch.
“[The police] said it was confidential and they couldn’t tell me what was going on,” she said.
Elizabeth Henshaw, of Ormstown, Que., told Radio-Canada she saw a large police presence around her home on Friday, including officers she says were dressed in tactical gear.
Henshaw said police were also looking through a car that had been stopped on her street, before it was eventually taken away.
She said Ormstown is a “very quiet little town,” with a population just under 4,000 people, according to Statistics Canada.
“It was very unusual, it was the talk of the town,” she said.
Images from the scene that were shared with CBC News, as well as others posted on social media, also show a heavy police presence near a gas station in the area.
Multiple officers — some in tactical gear — can be seen in photos that were taken on Wednesday.
Residents of the town reported hearing loud bangs ring out after an RCMP vehicle intentionally hit another vehicle, purportedly carrying a suspect in the case.
The RCMP has not commented on the operation, which was carried out by officers based in Ontario.