Akodad stoked terror in the tight-knit Jewish community, in this quiet suburban neighbourhood and across the island, as Montreal and Canada saw antisemitism soar following the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks in Israel that launched the Gaza-Israel war. The arson came just over a year after another firebombing at the same location exactly 30 days following the October 7 attacks. The first firebomber was never found. The Hebrew Foundation school adjacent to the 58-year-old Beth Tikvah also had flags set on fire in April 2023.<\/p>\n
SPVM officers arriving on the scene of Akodad\u2019s attack doused the fire. While the damage was minor, the attack stunned the community, particularly as it was the second such assault in a year.<\/p>\n
Last January, Akodad pleaded guilty to three of six arson-related offences he was charged with when arrested in April 2025<\/a>. Section 434 \u2014 intentionally or recklessly caused damage by fire or explosion to property; section 430(1)(a)(3)(a) \u2014 mischief with respect to property with value exceeding $5,000; and 436.1(a) \u2014 arson by negligence. The three offences carry maximum prison terms of 14, 10, and 5 years, respectively.<\/p>\n The Crown is seeking a 24-month prison sentence, about nine additional months in custody after credit for time served. Another two months in custody (until Superior Court Judge Karine Gigu\u00e8re delivers her decision Sept. 10) will likely mean another three-month reduction.<\/p>\n Crown prosecutor Christopher Hadjis-Chartrand told The CJN that courts do not overlap counts for a singular offending act. \u201cIn other words, even if we had done the trial, Mr. Akodad would not have been sentenced to all six counts.\u201d<\/p>\n Clad in sweatpants and sweatshirt, bearded with a large ponytail and his wrists handcuffed in front of him, Akodad, now 20, told Judge Gigu\u00e8re the act \u2014 a \u201ccontract barbecue\u201d \u2014 had \u201cnothing to do\u201d with Jews.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the worst thing I\u2019ve ever done in my life,\u201d said Akodad at his day-long sentencing hearing, his 17th court appearance since his April 2025 arrest in east-end Anjou, when the SPVM\u2019s Arson and Explosives Unit investigators seized evidence at his home.<\/p>\n \u201cI need three barbecues\u201d<\/p>\n The evening before his attack, Akodad visited a \u201cchill spot\u201d at a downtown Airbnb condo with a friend \u201cto get high, where we could smoke with girls.\u201d There he was allegedly approached by a man he did not know and cannot identify, who told him of an opportunity to make money, introducing him via a Signal FaceTime call to another individual who hired him for \u201ca mission.\u201d The man, described only as a white male with dark hair and glasses, allegedly said: \u201cI need three barbecues,\u201d criminal slang for arson, for which Akodad was promised $15,000.<\/p>\n More than a dozen Jewish community members, including Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) and Beth Tikvah representatives, listened in the courtroom, along with Akodad\u2019s family and a representative of a Maghrebin (North African) community centre, who submitted a report on behalf of the accused\u2019s family. Community victim impact statements were read by former B\u2019nai Brith Canada Quebec regional director and Beth Tikvah Cantor Henry Topas, and CIJA Quebec vice-president Eta Yudin.<\/p>\n In 2025, said Topas, \u201canti-Jewish hatred, while widely propagated by a virulent and venomous subgroup of our society, has spread to every aspect of Canadian life.\u201d Streets, synagogues, schools, educational institutions, workplaces, and online platforms, he said, \u201chave been increasingly infiltrated by malign actors eager to spread and incite hatred against the Jewish community,\u201d citing the 18.6 daily hate incidents targeting Jewish Canadians as recently reported by B\u2019nai Brith<\/a>.<\/p>\n After two such attacks, congregation members, those who attend weekly services, and children attending the day school have experienced \u201cfear that has now risen exponentially. We have to ask ourselves: Should we risk a third?\u201d The other question, he says, is due to how Akodad \u201creturned seconds later and took a picture of the vestibule that was now in flames. Who was the photo for?\u201d<\/p>\n The CJN asked the SPVM if investigators explored the third-party connection, given recent revelations by federal officials and Toronto Police Service that shootings<\/a> at Toronto synagogues and the U.S. consulate were carried out by young men recruited by foreign actors through online platforms and ordered to film their crimes. A response was not obtained by press time.<\/p>\n Hadjis-Chartrand told the court that offences targeting Jewish institutions strike at the heart of religious freedom, with consequences extending far beyond physical damage. \u201cSuch crimes become a cancer that infiltrates people\u2019s minds,\u201d he said. \u201cThey undermine social peace.\u201d<\/p>\n The sentence must send a clear message, he added, noting that \u201cwithin Jewish history, using fire against Jewish institutions carries particular symbolic significance\u2026 Every minority in Canada should be able to gather peacefully, confident that society will protect them. The court should communicate that no community will be left behind.\u201d He referenced Bill C-9,<\/a> the Combatting Hate Act. While not applying in this case, having only been recently adopted, he said, \u201cParliament\u2019s actions reflect the current social climate and the need to reinforce protection of places of worship.\u201d<\/p>\n Topas told Gigu\u00e8re that Canada\u2019s justice system \u201cis the last bastion of hope for the community, to stand up and act in the face of these threats\u2026 We cannot tolerate acts of violence against religious institutions, regardless of faith. Everyone has the right to live in peace in Canada. Mr. Akodad, himself already charged in another case, poses a threat to the safety and security of Canadians.\u201d<\/p>\n For his part, Akodad pleaded with the Jewish community to forgive him. \u201cIt\u2019s not obvious\u201d he said, \u201cbut I regret what I did,\u201d adding, \u201cif they don\u2019t forgive me, I can\u2019t forgive myself.\u201d<\/p>\n Prompted by his lawyer, he spoke extensively about a difficult childhood, being bullied, his parents\u2019 divorce, low self-esteem, drug use and a criminal history including car thefts, shoplifting, and other offences, insisting, \u201cIt wasn\u2019t all the drugs\u2019 fault. I\u2019m not a victim.\u201d His mother sat silently near the back of the courtroom, weeping through much of the testimony, at one point leaving the courtroom accompanied by the community centre director \u2014 the same man who aggressively approached journalists in the courthouse, telling them whom they could and could not film. When asked to identify himself, the man, later identified as El Amine Serhani, told reporters, \u201cDon\u2019t worry about who I am.\u201d<\/p>\n Akodad claimed he didn\u2019t torch the Federation building because he panicked, and just chose to break the window, striking it repeatedly with a hammer. When the driver asked to see the video, he lied, telling him he panicked because people were around. \u201cI\u2019m not a killer. I\u2019m not someone who would ever burn something with someone inside.\u201d But the driver insisted he torch the second address: \u201cHe wouldn\u2019t take me home unless the mission was completed.\u201d<\/p>\n The pair circled the block for approximately 10 minutes before Akodad exited and approached the synagogue doors, where he smashed the window, before pouring enough gasoline inside to ensure the building would ignite, and used paper to light the fire. He fled as he found himself surrounded by flames, dropping tools and the driver\u2019s cellphone, before returning to retrieve them and film the blaze.<\/p>\n Testimonial inconsistencies and missing recollections<\/p>\n Hadjis-Chartrand disputed Akodad\u2019s claims of stress and drug-induced memory loss, saying evidence shows he remained capable of planning, complex decision-making, lying and strategizing, and filming the offence as instructed, demonstrating a greater level of awareness.<\/p>\n During pointed cross-examination, he said Akodad claimed he couldn\u2019t remember things because he was very intoxicated, \u201cyet you remember numerous details. You were able to manipulate tools, handle a hammer, gasoline and other incendiary materials, carry on conversations throughout the evening, and remember discussions with the driver.\u201d Moreover, if lying about people seeing him at the Federation building worked to persuade the driver to leave, asked Hadjis-Chartrand, \u201cwhy didn\u2019t you use it again at the synagogue?\u201d<\/p>\n He also challenged Akodad\u2019s claims of ignorance that these were Jewish institutions, believing they were businesses. Akodad said he didn\u2019t notice or recognize the Hebrew lettering on the doors of the shul<\/a> or any Jewish symbols. He later acknowledged he may have seen a Star of David \u201cin films\u201d or in lessons at school and knew it represented the Jewish religion. \u201cI\u2019m not stupid. I know what it is,\u201d he told the court, adding, \u201cit resembles the star on the Moroccan flag<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHad I known it was a religious institution, I would never have done it,\u201d he said. His lawyer noted that, unlike a cathedral or a mosque (with minarets), the synagogue was not immediately recognizable as such.<\/p>\n Once learning the mission failed, the alleged contractor refused to pay Akodad the full amount and instead paid him only another $2,500. To collect, Akodad said the following day he travelled by bus before getting into a car with two other individuals, recognizing only the driver from the night before, then met another person whom he could not identify inside a Montreal residence that he could not recall, where he was given the cash.<\/p>\n Defense argues it was only about \u201cmoney\u201d, not hate<\/p>\n Defence counsel Nazar Saaty said Akodad spent approximately 10 months in pre-trial detention under \u201cdifficult conditions,\u201d notably placement with gang members, lockdowns, limited family visits, and exposure to violence. He was previously detained for car theft in Ontario and was on release in connection with outstanding robbery charges when arrested for the synagogue arson.<\/p>\n Saaty acknowledged that Jews are Canada\u2019s most frequently targeted religious community, agreeing the court cannot treat this \u201cexactly like damage to an ordinary commercial building. We are dealing with a community that has been disproportionately targeted.\u201d<\/p>\n Nevertheless, Saaty argued that Akodad was an immature, teenage drug user, motivated solely \u201cby money,\u201d not hatred or ideology, arguing the Crown hadn\u2019t proven beyond reasonable doubt that he knew he was targeting Jewish institutions, and thus deserves \u201cthe benefit of the doubt\u2026 It is unreasonable to expect someone with only a Secondary 2 or 3 education to recognize symbols such as the Star of David or a menorah,\u201d Saaty argued. \u201cWe cannot ignore that.\u201d Community members in court, he added, \u201chave every right to be fearful, but (the accused) should not become a scapegoat for all crimes committed against the Jewish community in Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n CIJA\u2019s Eta Yudin dismissed talk of scapegoating, telling The CJN, \u201cFor a second time in a very short span of time, both these locations, very visible Jewish community landmarks in Dollard, were targeted. That is the reality of what happened in a climate where Jews are the most targeted and disproportionately targeted religious minority in Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n After the January guilty plea, the parties were clear they would not agree on sentencing. \u201cGiven the odious nature of the offence,\u201d Hadjis-Chartrand told The CJN, \u201cthe Crown had taken the position early on that a joint submission would not be possible,\u201d necessitating a contested hearing.<\/p>\n The defence proposed a 20-month sentence, served in the community, minus approximately 15 months for time served. Alternatively, Saaty suggested a straight prison sentence of nine-12 months, which amounts to time served.<\/p>\n Either way, Akodad would continue treatment and therapy with conditions and said he\u2019s prepared to do community work. \u201cI deserve to serve a punishment\u2026 I imagined if someone tried to burn the mosque I attend with my father, I would think they were a monster too.\u201d<\/p>\n He said he wants to speak directly to the community to apologize. \u201cThey are right to be afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n Community remains in fear<\/p>\n Yudin recalls that viewing video footage of Akodad attacking the synagogue \u201cso violently, in order to supposedly set it on fire, was chilling,\u201d recalling his determination to enter the building. She cited Montreal police data showing the Jewish community in 2023 was targeted by 103 of the 139 religion-related hate crimes. It\u2019s in that context that Montreal Jews woke up on Dec. 18, 2024, \u201cto learn that new acts of intimidation had been committed during the night.\u201d<\/p>\n
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