Ontario man faces terrorism charges
RCMP claims he helped fund Islamic State
An “organized network associated with” Islamic State was disrupted Tuesday by the RCMP with the arrest of an Ottawa man who is accused of being involved in financing the travel of recruits, and charges against two of his associates who remain abroad.
Awso Peshdary, 25, was charged with three terrorism counts for allegedly conspiring with John Maguire, 24, to send Canadians to Syria to join Islamic State. Among them was allegedly Khadar Khalib, 23, who travelled to the region last year.
“Our evidence shows that these individuals conspired to participate in or contribute to the activity of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, also known as ISIS,” assistant commissioner James Malizia told reporters at RCMP headquarters in Ottawa.
The charges followed an “extensive and complex” investigation dubbed Project Servant, conducted by the RCMP’s Integrated National Security Enforcement Team, with “important leads” provided by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
Only Peshdary is in custody. Maguire left Canada in late 2012 and became an Islamic State fighter, and Khalib did the same months later, RCMP say. Maguire was reportedly killed in Syria last month, but police said that remains unconfirmed.
“As these two individuals remain at large, arrest warrants have been obtained and a notice will be issued through Interpol,” RCMP Chief Supt. Jennifer Strachan said. “We continue to work actively with our domestic and international partners to return Khalib and Maguire to Canada to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”
The charges are the first in Canada related to a facilitation network alleged to have been helping send foreign fighters to Islamic State.
“Peshdary provided financial support to facilitate the travel to ISIS. And the others travelled abroad to become members of ISIS,” Malizia said.
Police said a spinoff of the investigation had resulted in the arrests of three other Ottawa men in January. Twins Ashton and Carlos Larmond, both 24, and Suliman Mohamed, 21, all face terrorism charges as a result of the parallel investigation.
A big-box store employee, Peshdary was charged with participation in the activity of a terrorist group and facilitating an activity for a terrorist group. Along with the other two, he faces a charge of conspiring to participate or contribute to an activity of a terror group.
Peshdary has long been on the radar of counter-terrorism authorities. In 2009, he was the subject of a CSIS investigation into a Canadian terrorist group whose leader had trained in Afghanistan and had plotted bomb attacks in Canada.