Five people, including three minors, have been arrested for carrying incendiary material in M0ntreal last week. According to police, their motives remain under investigation.
A security officer noticed a vehicle parked suspiciously near a synagogue early Wednesday morning and called Montreal police.
After receiving the call shortly after 2 a.m., police stopped a suspect vehicle near the corner of Kildare Rd. and Cavendish Blvd.
Police confirmed that they found incendiary material after searching the vehicle before arresting the two occupants, aged 20 and 22.
An additional “suspicious item” was found near the synagogue on Mackle Rd., according to a statement released by the City of Côte Saint-Luc.
“Since the October 7 attacks in Israel and the subsequent shootings, vandalism, and incitement targeting Jewish Montrealers, the City of Côte Saint-Luc wants to reassure the public that it is working in close collaboration with all security agencies in order to protect the public,” reads the statement.
“The City has increased patrols by Public Security agents around community buildings, and we are in direct contact with community officials, Federation CJA security team, and the Montreal police department (SPVM).”
Police said that 15 minutes after they received the call from Côte-St-Luc public security, officers stopped a second vehicle in the nearby Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce neighbourhood, which also led to incendiary items being discovered inside.
According to police, a 16-year-old and two 17-year-olds in the vehicle were subsequently arrested and all five suspects have been released with a promise to appear in court.
Police confirmed that both investigations involve the arson squad and that the “aim, in particular, to determine whether these events are local repercussions of the conflict in the Middle East.”
Two Montreal Jewish private schools in Côte Saint-Luc were hit with gunshots last year about a month after the Oct. 7th attack.
Montreal police enhanced their visibility in the days leading up to Oct. 7, which marks the first year anniversary of Hamas’ attack on Israel that killed over 1,200 people and led to more than 250 people being kidnapped and held hostage.
The Oct. 7 attack set in motion a gruelling war between Israel and Hamas, which has since killed tens of thousands of civilians on both sides of the war and displaced nearly 2 million.
“Côte Saint-Luc understands the serious concerns of the community because of intolerable levels of incitement and hatred. The City of Côte Saint-Luc’s main priority in the coming days and weeks will be on security,” continued the statement.