2013 Via Rail Canada terrorism plot

rdf:langString 2013 Via Rail Canada terrorism plot

rdf:langString Courtroom sketch of Raed Jaser being arraigned on special terrorism-related charges

rdf:langString None

rdf:langString Jordan, Ontario, Canada

rdf:langString Maple Leaf train

rdf:langString Conspiracy

rdf:langString The 2013 Via Rail Canada terrorism plot was a conspiracy to commit terrorist acts in and against Canada in the form of disruption, destruction or derailment of trains operated by Canada's national passenger railway service, Via Rail Canada. The alleged targeted train route was the Maple Leaf, the daily train service between Toronto and New York City operated jointly by Via Rail and Amtrak. A railway bridge over the Twenty Mile Creek in Jordan, Ontario, was later identified as the target, according to unsealed court documents. Suspects Chiheb Esseghaier, a Tunisian national, and Raed Jaser, a Palestinian, were arrested on 22 April 2013 by the RCMP and subsequently charged by the Crown in connection with the plot. Both men were permanent residents of Canada at the time of their arrests, although the Canadian government had sought for the deportation of Jaser for a second time after the conviction. The deportation attempt was withdrawn after the Ontario Court of Appeal allowed a new trial in August 2019. On 20 March 2015, an Ontario Superior Court of Justice jury found both defendants guilty on all but one count of the charges. The jury was discharged from determining the extent of guilt on the remaining charge. On 23 September 2015, both Esseghaier and Jaser were sentenced to life imprisonment for a combination of six terrorism-related offences. In August 2019, the Ontario Court of Appeal ordered a new trial for both men due to juror selection issues in Jaser's case, although the Supreme Court of Canada overturned the verdict on 7 October 2020 and, despite affirming the issues regarding juror selection, refused a new trial because their rights to a fair trial were not harmed. The case was then sent back to the appellate court which will hear the remaining issues regarding a new trial.