A 31-year-old man from Dundurn, Saskatchewan, Canada has been charged following a targeted vandalism attack against the Congregation Agudas Israel Synagogue, police announced on Thursday.
The Saskatoon Police Service confirmed that the suspect turned himself in to police headquarters last Friday and is facing three counts of mischief under $5,000. The charges stem from an investigation into reports of eggs being thrown at a building and vehicles associated with the congregation.
The attack took place during morning Shabbat services on August 1. Following the incident, the synagogue implemented additional security measures to protect its members and facilities.
“As a police service, we recognize the significance of incidents that target faith-based communities and the impact on their sense of safety and belonging,” Superintendent James Oliver said in a statement. “Any evidence that an offence was motivated by bias, prejudice, or hate is considered by the court as an aggravating factor during sentencing.”
CIJA says synagogue attack reflects hate targeting Jewish Canadians
Reacting to the arrest in a statement shared on social media, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) stated that they “welcome this update from the Saskatoon Police Service and commend its investigative teams, including its hate crimes unit, for moving swiftly to identify, arrest and charge the individual responsible for vandalizing Agudas Israel Synagogue in Saskatoon.”
CIJA added that “attacking a place of worship is deeply disturbing and represents yet another example of extremists spreading hate and targeting Jewish Canadians, in this instance while members of our community were praying inside the synagogue,” and emphasized that they “expect this hate criminal to be held fully accountable under the law.”
The incident forms part of a wider wave of attacks targeting Jewish and Israeli institutions across Canada over the past month. These include suspected antisemitic arson and shooting attacks targeting Jewish-owned Kiva’s Bagel Bar locations in Toronto, and the destruction of the kosher restaurant Noam in Montreal.