Two ‘religiously strict’ men behind foiled al-Qaeda-supported plot to derail VIA train
Joseph Brean and Adrian Humphreys | 13/04/22 | Last Updated: 13/04/23 9:16 AM ET The RCMP and other law enforcement officials announce a foiled terrorism plot on a VIA Rail passenger train. Two men have been arrested: Chibeb Esseghaier of Montreal and Raed Jaser of Toronto.
Tim Fraser for National PostThe RCMP and other law enforcement officials announce a foiled terrorism plot on a VIA Rail passenger train. Two men have been arrested: Chibeb Esseghaier of Montreal and Raed Jaser of Toronto.
Statement from VIA Rail on the alleged terrorism plot
Thanks to an unprecedented cooperation between law enforcement and the security units of various departments, VIA Rail and CN, at no time was there an imminent threat to the VIA Rail passengers, employees or the general public. We cooperate with all involved in ensuring the safety and security of our passengers, our employees and the public. We do not comment on law enforcement activities. We acknowledge the work and dedication of the agencies involved.
Chiheb Esseghaier, the younger of two men charged in the al Qaeda train plot, is a Tunisian-born PhD student at a Université du Québec nanotechnology lab who was threatened with expulsion for his disruptive behaviour and strict religious views that alienated his colleagues.
One colleague at Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS) in Varennes, Que., described Mr. Esseghaier, 30, as “a brainwashed person, basically,” who tore down posters he did not approve of, and pestered the administration to install a prayer room.
“He had very strict religious behaviour that made many people frustrated,”
said the colleague, who asked that his name be withheld. “He had problems with the administration.”
His co-accused, Raed Jaser, 35, is a Palestinian with citizenship in the United Arab Emirates, who has permanent resident status in Canada. Search warrants were being executed Monday at his home in a Toronto suburb, where neighbours said they have seen a group of young men in traditional Muslim garb weightlifting.
‘‘If I was outside, or getting into my car, he wouldn’t even say hello. He was a very reserved guy. They kept entirely to themselves,’’ said Sanjay Chaudhary, 47, who lives next door.
Mr. Esseghaier has a lengthy public profile, including several academic publications on new methods for detecting prostate cancer and HIV, and a profile page on the professional networking site Linkedin that is illustrated with the black flag of the Islamic State of Iraq, an umbrella group of Iraqi insurgent groups affiliated with al Qaeda.
LinkedIn
LinkedInChiheb Esseghaier's Linkenin profile page.
Police visited the lab, outside Montreal, in advance of Monday’s police announcement, according to another student. They told students he had been arrested, said EsenSokullu, a PhD student in the Biosensor BioMEMS Bionanotechnology Lab at INRS-Varennes.
The two men are charged with conspiring to carry out an attack against, and conspiring to murder, persons unknown for the benefit of, at the direction of, or in association with a terrorist group.
Though the terrorism arrests were shocking, Mr. Esseghaier made no secret of the intensity of his beliefs, and what they compelled him to do.
“He was not imposing to other people, but he was complaining for example there is no prayer room. I remember once that he saw some posters with women on the posters and he was complaining,” the source said. “It was for a charity, I remember, and he basically tore down the posters… They warned him that the next time this happens, they are going to kick him out.”
“He was not aggressive or problematic in the working places, but he had some tension sometimes with the administration,” the colleague said.
Peter J. Thompson / National Post
Peter J. Thompson / National PostRCMP Officers escort a man in shackles from a plane at Buttonville Airport in Ontario, Monday April 22, 2013
Born in Tunis, the capital of Tunisia, Mr. Esseghaier studied engineering and industrial biology there before moving to Canada for studies at Sherbrooke University, according to a profile on the lab’s website. He has been in Canada on a student visa.
He joined the INRS’s Biosensor BioMEMS Bionanotechnology Lab in late 2010, doing a PhD focused on developing optical and electrochemical biosensors.
A website for the lab, headed by Prof. Mohammed Zourob, was quickly erased from the Internet after the news broke Monday, but much of it remained available in a cached form.
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Ms. Esseghaier’s publications include work on new methods for detecting prostate cancer, HIV and other diseases in people and animals. He also listed conferences he attended recently in California, Mexico, Montreal and Hamilton, Ont.
In recent months, Mr. Esseghaier spent a lot of time traveling abroad, his colleague said. When in the lab, he would pray in various places, including the cafeteria.
“When I saw the news, I got a shock, I was speechless,” the colleague said.
Peter J. Thompson / National Post
Peter J. Thompson / National PostRCMP Officers escort a man from a plane at Buttonville Airport in Ontario, Monday April 22, 2013
“He was very very strict about his behaviour,” the colleague said. “He was very religously strict.”
The colleague said he did not think Mr. Esseghaier is married, but did not know for sure.
According to his Toronto neighbours, Mr. Jaser lives with his wife in the back half of a a semi-detached brick house in northern Toronto.
‘‘We moved here last year and they already lived here. They’re renting next door,’’ said Mr. Chaudhary. In all that time, he never spoke to him.
Neighbours say he wore the flowing gown of Muslim attire and his wife wore a full-face covering burqa.
Last summer, five or six young men lived in the house with the couple for a few months, he said. The men, all of whom dressed in traditional Muslim garb, seemed obsessed with weightlifting and fitness. They worked out daily with barbells, and ate together in the backyard like family.
‘‘You just don’t know who you’re living next to. It’s a really nice peaceful neighbourhood,’’ said Mr. Chaudhary.
Another neighbour said an RCMP van and police cars arrived at the scene early Monday afternoon. “It’s very scary, honestly it’s surreal. I’ve lived here my whole life and to hear this, especially after what happened in Boston,’’ said Melina Hughes, 27, who lives three doors down.
She locked the doors and didn’t go outside until her husband came home. When they asked police officers guarding the scene what was going on, they said they couldn’t talk about it, but they would be hearing about it on the news.
‘‘We wish we had been informed, it’s frightening.’’
Around 7 p.m., police in civilian clothes started going door to door speaking to neighbours.
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