STRATHROY, Ont. — A suspect whom police feared planned to set off a bomb in a major Canadian city was killed Wednesday by police in a Strathroy home.
More details about what the RCMP describe as a “potential terrorism threat” and a possible link to a heavy police presence in a northwest London neighbourhood are expected to be revealed at a news conference Thursday.
The suspect was identified as Aaron Driver. He was originally from Winnipeg and in his mid 20s. A supporter of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, he was the subject of a peace bond after he was detained by RCMP in Winnipeg in June 20
The bond stated there are “reasonable grounds to fear that he may participate, contribute directly or indirectly in the activity of a terrorist group.”
Driver was living in Strathroy. a community of about 20,000 about 40 kilometres west of London.
Driver had detonated a device that injured him and another person, his family said. He had another device that he was going to detonate, which is why police shot him.
In June 2015 in Winnipeg, RCMP sought a peace bond against Driver, also known as Harun Abdurahman, on the grounds he would “participate in or contribute to a terrorist group.”
He had been accused of posting jihadist propaganda on social media sites, some of it supportive of ISIL. Driver eventually agreed to the peace bond but did not face criminal charges.
“I wasn’t too surprised that Harun would face more law enforcement action at some point. He had been warned in the past about his posts,” Prof. Amarnath Amarasingam, who has been studying Canadian foreign fighters for a major research project told the National Post’s Stewart Bell at the time.
“Instead of scaling back his activity, he only became more entrenched in the online network, had multiple backup accounts from which to tweet from in case one got suspended, and never really slowed down.”
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Geoff RobinsPolice keep watch around a house in Strathroy, Ont., on Wednesday.
“With respect to the police and security actions taken in Canada today, I have discussed the situation with the prime minister to confirm that public safety has been and continues to be properly protected,” Goodale said.
“Earlier today, the RCMP received credible information regarding a potential terrorist threat and took action to ensure public safety.”
The RCMP issued a statement about the same time images of police officers and vehicles in Strathroy started circulating on Twitter.
“A suspect was identified and the proper course of action has been taken to ensure that there is no danger to the public’s safety,” the RCMP said.
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