The man who died after a shootout outside a Belleville, Ont., synagogue on Yom Kippur had sued the Canadian Armed Forces for $1 million after he was discharged for refusing a COVID-19 vaccine, according to Federal Court documents reported this week by the Kingstonist and its sister outlet, the Quinteist.
Sean Douglas Reginald Ward, 29, of Quinte West, Ont., opened fire on a Belleville police officer stationed outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue on the evening of Sept. 20, as about two dozen members of the congregation gathered inside for Yom Kippur services, Belleville police said. Const. Jeff Smith, a 13-year veteran of the force, returned fire and was struck; he remains in hospital in critical but stable condition. A second officer at the scene also discharged a weapon. Ward was wounded in the exchange and died in hospital the next day. No one inside the synagogue was hurt, though gunfire left about two dozen holes in a stained-glass window, police said.
Belleville police Chief Murray Rodd said Thursday that investigators have concluded the attack was deliberate and hate-motivated, targeting the city’s Jewish community. Rodd said Ward “had the means, the motive and the mechanisms to cause a mass casualty and the destruction of the Jewish synagogue.” Police have released video in which Ward can be heard telling the wounded officer, “You are going to die for the Jews,” and Ontario Solicitor General Michael Kerzner said the province “must suffocate hate.”
Court filings show Ward joined the Canadian Armed Forces in July 2017 and served nearly five years as an infanteer with the 3rd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, based at CFB Edmonton, reaching the rank of corporal. He refused the COVID-19 vaccine on religious grounds, was denied an exemption and was released in June 2022 under category 5(f), a designation for members deemed unsuitable for further military service, Department of National Defence spokesperson Andree-Anne Poulin confirmed to Kingstonist.
Ward was one of several current and former service members who filed a Federal Court claim in 2023 challenging the military’s vaccine mandate, seeking $1 million in damages. Court documents cited by Kingstonist say Ward alone claimed roughly $140,000 in financial losses tied to his dismissal. The federal government filed a statement of defence denying the allegations, and the status of the claim was not immediately clear.
Global News reported that people who knew Ward during his military service said he had repeated COVID-19 conspiracy theories and antisemitic material, including claims blaming Jewish people for the pandemic, though police have not detailed publicly what additional evidence, beyond the recorded threat, supports the hate-crime finding.
The Sons of Jacob Synagogue shooting is the latest in a string of attacks and threats against Jewish institutions in Canada over the past year, including gunfire at two Toronto-area synagogues in March and vandalism at synagogues in Halifax last fall. Jewish community organizations have repeatedly called for increased security funding and police patrols around synagogues, particularly during major holidays.
Belleville police said the investigation remains active and urged anyone with information to come forward.
