Tories, Jewish Group Condemn Bail for Suspect Arrested on Terrorism Charges

(L-R) Waleed Khan, Osman Azizov, and Fahad Sadaat. Police have arrested the three Toronto men on 79 charges including "hate-motivated" offences targeting women and the Jewish community. Khan additionally faces terrorism-related charges. Peel Regional Police handout photo

Conservatives and a Jewish organization are expressing outrage after learning a man charged with terrorism and attempting to kidnap women in the Toronto area was out on bail at the time of his arrests.

Waleed Khan, 26, of Toronto was arrested on terrorism charges on Nov. 26, the RCMP announced last week. The federal police service has accused him of providing funds and property to terrorist group ISIS, aiding terrorist activity, and conspiracy to commit murder for a terrorist group.

He also faces a raft of charges from the Toronto Police Service for attempted kidnappings in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) earlier this year as well as for “hate-motivated” offences targeting women and the Jewish community, police announced on Dec. 19.

Khan was also charged by Peel Regional Police on Aug. 18 in connection with an attempted kidnapping in Mississauga, Ont.

Khan was on probation for prior violent offences and prohibited from possessing firearms at the time of his August arrest, Peel police said in a media release. Police noted in the Aug. 27 announcement that he had again been released on bail, this time with an ankle monitor.

A Toronto police spokesperson confirmed in an email that Khan has remained in custody since his November arrest, although a fellow suspect in the attempted kidnappings has been released on bail.

Khan and two additional suspects, 18-year-old Osman Azizov and 19-year-old Fahad Sadaat, were all charged in connection with the attempted abductions in the GTA in May and June. Khan and Sadaat remain in custody, but Azizov has been released on bail under court-imposed conditions, media relations officer Stephanie Miceli said.

Conservative MP Chris Warkentin called Azizov’s release on bail “insane.” “This is Liberal Bail,” the Alberta MP said in a Dec. 21 X post.

Fellow Tory MP Marilyn Gladu also took to social media to comment on Khan’s release, suggesting his release was due to bail reform measures in Bill C-75, passed in 2019, which she referred to as an “awful catch and release law.”

Senator Leo Housakos weighed in on Khan being on bail at the time of his November arrest.

“Liberals did this. It’s their catch and release system. Remember that when they tell you they’re fixing it,” said Housakos in a Dec. 20 post. “Remember who broke it and all the lives that have been left in shambles as a result. Some things you can’t put back together.”

Jewish Civil Rights group Tafsik Organization accused all three suspects of wanting to “kidnap Jewish girls,” in a Dec. 19 X post

Terrorism Charges

The RCMP is accusing Khan of providing property in Toronto and elsewhere in Ontario between June 17 and Aug. 17 that would be used by or benefit ISIS, and of participating in activities of a terrorist group by doing so.

Police have also accused him of providing social media accounts to the terrorist organization, following instructions from those in the terrorist group, and making himself “available to facilitate or commit a terrorism offence.”

The suspect has also been accused of conspiracy to commit murder at the direction of or in association with the terrorist organization, and of conspiring with others to commit murder.

None of the charges have been tested in court.

Alleged Kidnappings

The first alleged kidnapping attempt of a woman occurred on May 31 near Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue E. and two women were targeted on Ellesboro Drive near Swanhurst Boulevard in Mississauga on June 24, according to the Toronto police release.

The suspects were armed on both occasions, but were thwarted by passersby, police said.

Peel officers arrested and charged Khan, Azizov, and Sadaat in August and investigators linked the attempted kidnapping in Mississauga to the incident in Toronto, Peel Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah said in a joint YouTube video with Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw, and RCMP Assistant Commissioner Matt Peggs to announce the latest charges.

Police executed search warrants as part of Project Neapolitan at the suspects’ Toronto homes, which resulted in officers seizing firearms, ammunition, high-capacity magazines, and “other items of evidentiary value,” Toronto police said.

“The investigation identified alleged offences that were motivated in part by hate-motivated extremism with potential links to terrorism,” Demkiw said in the video. “Throughout this investigation, our police services worked closely with our partners at all levels to put a coordinated safety strategy in place.”

Each of the three suspects face 19 charges, which include two counts of attempted kidnapping with a weapon each and several sexual assault offences.

Khan is also facing 17 additional charges, including assault with a weapon, possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000, failure to comply with probation, breach of probation order, and numerous weapons charges.

The men are scheduled to appear in the Ontario Court of Justice on Jan. 29.

Chandra Philip contributed to this report.