Montreal police arrest 19-year-old man in connection with a December 2024 arson at Beth Tikvah Synagogue and vandalism at a nearby Jewish center. The suspect faces multiple charges, though community leaders are calling for hate crime charges to be added.
Montreal’s police force has taken a suspect into custody in connection with a firebombing that targeted a West Island synagogue in December 2024, CTV News reported on Wednesday. A separate Jewish community facility located nearby was also defaced during the same period.
Authorities confirmed that a 19-year-old male suspect was arrested Wednesday in the city’s Anjou district. Investigators also executed a search warrant at a residence linked to the suspect, resulting in the seizure of multiple pieces of evidence.
Court documents reveal the individual in custody has been identified as Mohamed Ilyess Akodad. He is facing charges including arson, mischief, and being an accessory after the fact.
“Today’s news, that an individual has been charged in connection with the firebombing of Beth Tikvah Synagogue and Federation CJA’s West Island campus last December, is a much-needed development,” said Eta Yudin, Quebec Vice President of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA).
Emergency services were alerted on December 18 to a fire at Congregation Beth Tikvah in Dollard-des-Ormeaux. Upon arriving, officers managed to control the flames using a fire extinguisher. An incendiary device was discovered at the scene, and eyewitnesses reported seeing a suspect fleeing shortly after the fire broke out.
The attack was the second on the synagogue, which had previously firebombed in November of 2023.
Although the building sustained only limited damage, the emotional and psychological toll on the local Jewish community has been significant.
B’nai Brith Canada expressed support for the Montreal police’s investigative efforts.
“We are grateful to the police for diligently investigating this case,” said Henry Topas, Regional Director for Quebec and Atlantic Canada at B’nai Brith Canada and the cantor at Beth Tikvah. “Brazen attacks on our places of worship have left deep scars in Montreal’s Jewish community.
“An arrest is a relief, but antisemitism continues to escalate in Quebec and throughout the country. We hope that, at a later stage, the police decide to add hate-crime charges.”
The December arson was among the most disturbing incidents highlighted in B’nai Brith Canada’s just-released 2024 Annual Audit of Antisemitic Incidents, which documented a 215.7% rise in such acts in Quebec compared to the previous year.
“Since October 7, 2023, Beth Tikvah has been attacked in repeated, shocking displays of antisemitism,” said Richard Robertson, Director of Research and Advocacy at B’nai Brith Canada, referencing the Hamas-led terror attacks in Israel over a year ago. “Since then, there has been a crisis of antisemitism in Canada. We are pleased that the Montreal police have done their due diligence on this arrest, but more must be done to restore Jewish Canadians’ sense of security and wellbeing.”
