Skip to Content Subscribe Our Offers My Account Manage My Subscriptions FAQ Newsletters Canada Canadian True Crime Canadian Politics Health World Israel & Middle East Financial Post NP Comment Longreads Puzzmo Diversions Comics NP News Quiz New York Times Crossword Horoscopes Life Eating & Drinking Style Sponsored Play for Ontario Travel Travel Canada Travel USA Travel International Cruises Travel Essentials Culture Books Celebrity Movies Music Theatre Television Business Essentials Advice Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Buy Canadian Home Living Outdoor Living Kitchen & Dining Tech Style & Beauty Personal Care Entertainment & Hobbies Gift Guide Travel Guide Amazon Prime Day Deals Savings National Post Store More Sports Hockey Baseball Basketball Football Soccer Golf Tennis Driving Vehicle Research Reviews News Gear Guide Obituaries Place an Obituary Place an In Memoriam Classifieds Place an Ad Celebrations Working Business Ads Archives Healthing Epaper Manage Print Subscription Profile Settings My Subscriptions Saved Articles My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ Newsletters Canada World Financial Post NP Comment Longreads Puzzmo Diversions Life Shopping Epaper Manage Print Subscription HomeNP CommentTerry Newman: The Montreal arsonist who claimed he didn't know it was a synagogueAkodad provided few details about who hired and paid him, or where, to commit arson on institutions he claimed he didn’t know were JewishLast updated 41 minutes ago You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.A damaged window is seen at Congregation Beth Tikvah in Montreal after its second arson attack in a little more than a year, Wednesday December 18, 2024. Photo by John Mahoney/PostmediaMONTREAL — Last Tuesday, attendees in a Montreal courtroom heard what seemed like a fantastical story from an admitted arsonist and his lawyer. Twenty-one-year-old Mohamed Ilyes Akodad was in court to be sentenced; he had already pleaded guilty to firebombing a synagogue and Jewish community centre. Yet he insisted to the judge that he had no idea the buildings were Jewish. Instead, Akodad and his lawyer Nazar Saaty claimed he was simply carrying out a paid “three barbecues” contract on unknown locations, arranged through Signal and FaceTime. Akodad told the court that the job came after he attended a party with a friend he refused to name at a place he claimed he could not remember due to stress and drug use.Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.Unlimited online access to National Post.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.Support local journalism.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorThe Crown prosecutor told the court that Akodad could be released soon, a possibility which raises serious questions about the justice system’s ability to protect Jewish communities.This newsletter from NP Comment tackles the topics you care about. (Subscriber-exclusive edition on Fridays)By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againIn the early morning of Dec. 18, 2024, only two weeks before turning 19, Akodad used a hammer to smash the windows of the Federation CJA’s West Island offices in Dollard-des-Ormeaux, a suburb of Montreal. He then ventured across the street to set fire to Beth Tikvah synagogue, which is directly next to a Jewish day school that children were to attend later that morning. He was arrested on April 9, 2025, roughly four months after the attack. He sought release at his first bail hearing on May 1, 2025, but was denied and has remained in custody since.In January, Akodad pleaded guilty to three of the six arson-related offences for which he was charged, as well as to intentionally or recklessly causing damage by fire or explosion to property, mischief with respect to property with a value exceeding $5,000, and arson by negligence. The maximum sentences for these offences, respectively, are 14, 10 and 15 years.However, reporters were told after last week’s hearing by Crown prosecutor Christopher Hadjis-Chartrand that the Crown is seeking a two-year prison sentence while Akodad’s lawyer recommended a sentence of nine to 12 months under the conditions that Akodad enter therapy, perform community work and apologize to the community. We will not know what Akodad will receive until court reconvenes on Sept. 10, but given the amount of time he’s already served, Akodad could potentially be released that day.This is shocking, given the drug-induced, memory-loss-afflicted, “hired for three barbecues” story that Akodad and his lawyer told the court for the first time, as it was devoid of important details and particulars about where Akodad was supposedly hired and by whom.From the benches, around a dozen members of the Jewish community listened to the story of Akodad’s difficult childhood, low self-esteem and drug problems. Akodad also complained about the “difficult conditions” he’d experienced in his pre-trial detention since being arrested, including limited family visits and being placed with gang members. Akodad has also been convicted of car thefts. During this, his mother wept. His father, Fouad Akodad, later testified in support of his son, giving him a loving but stern berating with dramatics fit for a court sitcom.Akodad, led by his lawyer Saaty, then testified that he’d rather not name the friend who supposedly took him to a “chill spot” in an Airbnb. There, he said, a stranger offered him an opportunity to make $15,000. He claims he was then connected via Signal to another individual, whom he FaceTimed. That person allegedly gave him the “three barbecues” mission — code for arson.Akodad said he was driven to the West Island in an unknown vehicle. He was instructed to commit the arsons, film them for proof, and target a third unknown vehicle on the property. He claimed he did not know the targets were Jewish institutions — and would never have done it if he had known.Akodad said that because he never fully completed his mission, he only received $2,500 after taking a bus and then getting a ride from two individuals, one being the “mission” escort he couldn’t identify from the night before, to an unknown place in Montreal where another unknown individual gave him cash.Saaty argued that these arsons were about money and not hate, and that in the absence of proof beyond reasonable doubt that Akodad knew these were Jewish institutions, he should be given the “benefit of the doubt.”Crown prosecutor Hadjis-Chartrand questioned Akodad’s claims that he couldn’t remember things because of stress and drug use, and suggested that he was able to plan, remember details, carry out the acts and then film them. When pressed about not realizing these were Jewish institutions, he later acknowledged that he “wasn’t stupid” and knew what the Star of David looked like.This wasn’t the only thing that was bizarre about this hearing. Before it began, I, a videographer and another reporter waited in the hallway near the elevators and close to the courtroom, where signage expressly permits filming, hoping for an image of Akodad, who has no pictures online. A man approached and tried to tell us whom we could film. When asked who he was, he replied, “Don’t worry about who I am.”Later, I learned the man was El Amine Serhani, director of the Listening and Assistance Centre for Maghrebi People in Quebec. The same organization lists Akodad’s lawyer Saaty as a “citizen mentor” and his father Fouad Akodad as a “human pillar.” All three were present in court. The scene grew even more bizarre when the court constable shook Serhani’s hand after the hearing.If this wasn’t enough, on the same day in the same courthouse, there was a hearing for another alleged Montreal synagogue arsonist, Steven Luu, which was postponed to July 8 pending his psychological evaluation. Luu is accused of smashing a back window and throwing two incendiary devices into Temple Emanu-El-Beth-Sholom in Westmount, a suburb of Montreal, in the early morning of June 5. Security cameras captured the incident. Shortly afterward, Luu was arrested nearby by Westmount public safety patrol officers who discovered that he also had walkie-talkies with him, raising questions about whether other suspects may have been involved. For the time being, Luu remains in custody.Court will reconvene on Sept. 10 to hear what Akodad’s sentence will be. His story is suspect, not just because it is vague and unbelievable, but because it emerged two weeks after the Toronto police’s announcement that youth were being hired to attack Jewish schools and synagogues. It’s not clear if Akodad’s story is in any way linked, and it’s unlikely the court will fully interrogate that question now that he’s avoided a proper trial.National Post Join the Conversation This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.