Man pleads guilty to terror attack on Mississauga mosque

A man charged with terrorism in a March 2022 attack on a Mississauga mosque today (July 19) pleaded guilty in court to carrying out the violent incident with the intention of killing congregants who were praying inside the place of worship.

Appearing in Ontario Superior Court in Brampton, Mohammad Moiz Omar, 25, pleaded guilty to three criminal offences in connection with the March 19, 2022 attack on the Dar Al-Tawheed Islamic Centre on McAdam Rd., near Matheson Blvd. E. and Kennedy Rd. S.

Under Canada’s Criminal Code, those offences also constitute terrorist activity.

According to the Public Prosecution Service of Canada (PPSC), which prosecutes federal offences, Omar pleaded guilty to:

• administering a noxious thing (bear spray) with intent to endanger life or cause bodily harm
• assault with a weapon (hatchet)
• mischief to religious property with the motivation of bias, prejudice or hate based on religion

In an agreed statement of facts filed in court, Omar admitted that he entered the mosque armed with a hatchet and bear spray and intended to kill those inside in what would be the culmination of an attack he had planned for about a year.

Court heard Omar was motivated by a hateful ideology, and the attack was aimed at intimidating a segment of the public, namely Muslim Canadians.

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Additionally in the statement of facts, it was revealed that Omar had thought “of other ways to commit his attack” and that he had made an unsuccessful attempt to obtain a gun prior to March 19, 2022.

He also made statements to police after his arrest “expressing his hatred for Muslims and his disappointment at having failed to inflict any real harm on the victims,” a PPSC news release issued this afternoon (July 19) reads.

PPSC Deputy Director George Dolhai added, “We are a multicultural society where everyone must be free and feel secure in exercising all of their rights, including the right to gather and pray. As with all terrorist activities, an attack on some Canadians is an attack on all Canadians and their sense of security.”

The initial investigation of the mosque attack was conducted by Peel Regional Police and the RCMP.

Shortly after the incident, which unfolded on a Saturday morning just before 7 a.m., investigators reported that a man brandishing a hatchet had entered the mosque and discharged bear spray toward members of the congregation.

A number of the worshippers were hailed as heroes after they tackled and subdued the armed attacker and held him for police.

It was reported by insauga.com at the time that a group of about 20 men were in the middle of a dawn prayer when they were approached by the armed man.

Several victims suffered minor injuries as a result of the bear spray.

A number of children were also reportedly inside the mosque at the time of the attack.