24-04-2025
Man charged with firebombing West Island synagogue will have bail hearing on May 1
Montreal Crime
By
The man charged with firebombing a synagogue in Dollard-des-Ormeaux in December will undergo a bail hearing next week.
During a brief hearing held at the Montreal courthouse on Thursday, Mohamed Ilyess Akodad, 19, learned he will have to spend a least another week behind bars.
'I met with your family on Wednesday and we put together a release plan. I presented that to the prosecution, but the prosecution still objects to your release,' defence lawyer Julien Montpetit told Akodad while he appeared through a video conference from a jail in Montreal.
Montpetit was hoping to convince the Crown that his client could be released if he agreed to follow a series of conditions.
The attorney told Quebec Court Judge Mairi Springate that a bail hearing has instead been scheduled for May 1. The lawyer said four witnesses for the defence are expected to testify for the defence. Montpetit also requested that an Arabic interpreter who specializes in Moroccan dialect be present for the hearing.
Akodad faces six charges, including mischief, arson with disregard for human life and arson causing damage to property.
The charges are in connection with an incident on Dec. 18 at Congregation Beth Tikvah, a synagogue on Westpark Blvd. Around 3 a.m. on Dec. 18, someone threw a firebomb through a window. The first police officers to arrive at the scene were able to put out the fire with an extinguisher.
The police also learned that someone had broken two windows of the Federation CJA building across the street from the synagogue that same morning.
