STRATHROY, ONTARIO- RCMP in southern Ontario have killed terrorism suspect Aaron Driver after a confrontation on Wednesday evening.
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An anti-terror operation in Ontario – about two hours from Detroit – ends with police killing a man they claim was an ISIS supporter.
RCMP received credible information earlier Wednesday of a potential terrorist threat.
They said in a statement that the “proper course of action had been taken to ensure public safety”.
In Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of Montreal, a young man drove his auto into two soldiers in a parking lot, killing one of them before being shot dead by police after a short chase. Its population is roughly 20,000 people.
Driver’s death was not yet officially confirmed and his lawyer was not immediately available for comment.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak ahead of a news conference scheduled for Thurday, identified the suspect as Aaron Driver.
Police say Driver was poised to set off a second device when they killed him.
They wouldn’t say, however, if the suspect has been arrested, but did say there was no threat to the public.
Mounties applied for a peace bond that could impose limits on Driver’s activities, alleging in provincial court documents that investigators believed he might help with terrorist group activities. Later, the government announced that some of his strict bail conditions had been lifted and that he would not be going to trial.
Following these attacks, the Conservative government passed a bill giving the RCMP and Canada’s spy agency sweeping powers to thwart terror plots and prevent Canadian youth from flying overseas to join IS militants in Syria.
The London Free Press newspaper cited family members who reported that Driver was shot by police after he detonated a device, wounding himself and another person.
“The safety and security of Canadians is of the utmost importance to the RCMP and we take all such threats seriously”, the RCMP said.
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Canada’s public safety minister Ralph Goodale said in a statement released late on Wednesday the public had been “properly protected” following a national security threat, and that he had briefed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
