Extremists who have taken part in terrorist activities overseas remain a “significant concern,” the RCMP said Thursday as a Toronto-area woman appeared in court to face charges she attempted to join ISIS.
Haleema Mustafa, 23, was remanded into custody until Monday at her first court appearance on two counts of terrorism, including leaving Canada to participate in terrorist activities.
The RCMP said Mustafa was alleged to have flown to Turkey last year with her husband, Ikar Mao, who was charged in December with attempting to join ISIS in Syria.
“Canadian Extremist Travellers … continue to present a significant concern to law enforcement and intelligence services, having travelled abroad to engage in terrorism-related activities,” the RCMP said.
The RCMP said its Ontario Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (O-INSET) was investigating those who had left Canada for terrorist purposes and those who have returned.
Mustafa, a resident of Markham, Ont., left Toronto with Mao in June 2019. They were taken into custody by Turkish authorities in a city an hour’s drive north of a Syrian border town.
The case returns to court on Monday. Her lawyer could not be reached for comment. Mao also remains in custody.
The arrest of Mustafa, a resident of Markham, Ont., followed a “lengthy investigation” involving the Canada Border Services Agency and police in York, Toronto and Guelph, as well as the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre, among others, the RCMP said.
0:58 Guelph man charged with terrorism-related offences
Guelph man charged with terrorism-related offences
“The primary objective of these investigations is to ensure public safety while deterring, preventing and/or disrupting others from engaging in similar criminal activity,” the RCMP statement said.
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On Sunday, the RCMP arrested Kevin Omar Mohamed, who travelled to Syria in 2014 to take part in the al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat Al Nusrah. He was convicted and released from prison in 2019.
But the RCMP said he was taken back into custody after an investigation turned up information suggesting he “may pose a risk to public safety.” He is being held on a terrorism peace bond.
Meanwhile, a Calgary man who had allegedly travelled to Syria and taken part in ISIS was arrested in July. Hussein Sobhe Borhot, 34, was charged with four terrorism offences, including kidnapping.
The RCMP has also been investigating Canadian women and men who were captured by Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria, and who are being held at camps for foreign ISIS detainees.
“Appreciating we have a certain level of visibility on some of these individuals, we do rely on the public for support in identifying those who have intentions to either travel for a terrorist purpose or pose a more localized threat,” said Supt. Christopher deGale, the officer in charge of O-INSET.
EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.
Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.
Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.
Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.
Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.
RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.
Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.
“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.
But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.
“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.
While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.
Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.
The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.
It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.
Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.
The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.
Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”
However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.
McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”
About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.
McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.
He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.
The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
