Carney condemns Ontario shooting near synagogue on Yom Kippur as police investigate suspect’s motive

(CNN) — A police officer was shot and wounded near a synagogue in Ontario, Canada, on Sunday evening during an exchange of gunfire with a 29-year-old man armed with a shotgun as congregants gathered for Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, officials said.

Asked whether the incident could be considered a “terrorist attack” Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) spokesperson Kristy Denette said on Monday that “common sense would say that probably was the case.” However, she emphasized that the SIU is investigating the police response rather than the attack itself.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the attack was an example of why the government was working hard to bring in new laws “combating hate.”

“Last night, on the holiest ​night of the Jewish calendar, a shooting ​took place outside the Sons of Jacob Synagogue ⁠in Belleville,” Carney posted on X. “Jewish people must ​be able to worship safely. To live free, open, ​proud Jewish.”

Belleville Police Service Deputy Chief Sheri Meeks said at the press conference that authorities have identified the alleged shooter as Sean Ward, a 29-year-old from Quinte West, a town roughly 11 miles from the synagogue. He is in the hospital, and authorities have described his condition as life-threatening.

The police constable, named on Monday as Jeff Smith, is critically injured and faces “a significant road to recovery,” Meeks added.

The incident took place near the Sons of Jacob synagogue in Belleville, about 115 miles northeast of Toronto, at about 7 p.m.

“I also want to acknowledge the significant impact this incident has had on Belleville’s Jewish community,” Meeks said. “We have increased patrols and are maintaining a heightened police presence throughout the city, including around places of worship, while continuing to work closely with community leaders to provide reassurance and support.”

Meeks added that the police do not believe there is an “ongoing threat to public safety” in the aftermath of the shooting.

The president of the synagogue, Norm Weddum, told CNN earlier that the police officer saved the lives of everyone who had gathered inside, and that the building had been riddled with bullets.

Denette told reporters that the SIU is in the process of gathering bodycam footage from the incident. Preliminary findings indicate that the individual armed with a shotgun arrived to the scene in a truck on Sunday evening before discharging his firearm at an officer on duty, she said.

“That police officer returned fire, and then there was a second officer who arrived, and then also discharged their firearm,” Denette said.

When asked to comment on whether the shooting could be regarded as a terrorist attack, Denette said: “I want to be clear, the Special Investigations Unit has a limited mandate. Our mandate is to criminally investigate the actions of police officers, particularly in this case, an officer who discharged their firearm at a person.”

“There is a parallel criminal investigation going on with the Belleville Police,” Denette said. “So they’ll be looking at motives, that kind of thing, and any charges against the individual who did this.”

Synagogue president Weddum told CNN the police officer had been hired to protect the congregation that day. The officer was parked nearby in an unmarked vehicle and made contact with the shooter as he approached the building, he said.

He described hearing a series of bangs as he ushered people into the sanctuary, after which he and others went toward the front door to investigate.

“That’s when we heard it again –– ‘bang, bang, bang’ and they were very loud this time so we realized it was definitely shots being fired,” he said. “We all ran back, I closed the doors of the auditorium and I yelled out ‘everybody get down.’”

Weddum said bullets sprayed through the stain glass windows and across the room as worshipers crouched on the floor in fear, some calling 911.

“We were on the floor for what felt like ten minutes of gunfire but in reality, it was a few minutes. There were over 20 bullet holes in our windows.”

In a video geolocated by CNN which shows a neighborhood in Ontario close to the synagogue, police sirens and several loud gunshots can be heard ringing out.

No one inside the synagogue was injured but all Yom Kippur services were canceled, Weddum said.

York Regional Police, which patrols communities north of Toronto, said it would step up patrols and keep officers visible “where people gather to worship,” in response to the shooting.

Weddum said when the gunshots stopped, he stepped outside the building to find a heavy police presence and several officers tending to the injured officer and another individual being put into an ambulance.

A vibrant community

Carney told reporters in Ottawa on Monday that the shooting is an example of why his government is pushing for new legislation to combat hate and extremism.

“This is why we have legislation…combating hate,” Carney said. “It’s why we’re reinforcing protections, why we’re working with community police.”

Belleville Mayor Neil Ellis said the local community had been “rocked” by the shooting.

“We’ve been rocked by this,” he told CNN’s newsgathering partner CBC News. “Stuff like this doesn’t happen in Belleville.”

“We are a community that’s strong, and we are a community that’s vibrant, and we will get through this together.”

Ontario Premier Doug Ford responded to news of the shooting, saying in a statement: “We owe an immense debt of gratitude to this brave officer and to all the first responders who acted so quickly to keep the community safe.”

“My thoughts are with the Jewish community in Belleville and across Ontario, who have every right to gather and worship safely and without fear,” Ford added.

Pierre Poilievre, the leader of Canada’s opposition Conservative Party, said that “vile antisemitic violence in Canada must end, and this Liberal government must act now to protect our people.”

CNN has reached out to Belleville police and Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit for more information.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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CNN’s Billy Stockwell, Niamh Kennedy, Farida Elsebai, Max Saltman and Paula Newton contributed reporting.