Suspect in Belleville, Ont., synagogue shooting has died, police watchdog confirms

A former soldier who allegedly triggered a shootout with a police officer outside a Belleville, Ont., synagogue on Sunday has died.

The Special Investigations Unit, Ontario’s police watchdog, confirmed that Sean Ward died on Monday night and said an autopsy will be performed Wednesday in Kingston.

News of Ward’s death came as the Department of National Defence said its records show that a former Canadian Armed Forces member with the same name matches the description of the shooting suspect. 

“He joined the CAF in July 2017 and released in June 2022 at the rank of corporal. He served as an infantry soldier with the Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry and did not deploy during his service,” National Defence spokesperson Andrée-Anne Poulin wrote in an email to The Canadian Press. 

Ward, 29, was taken to hospital in life-threatening condition after the exchange of gunfire with a Belleville police officer who was stationed outside the Sons of Jacob synagogue. About two dozen people were inside the synagogue to mark the start of Yom Kippur, but none of them were injured in the shootout.  

The police officer, identified as Const. Jeff Smith, was also taken to hospital in critical but stable condition. 

Beyond identifying Ward as a resident of nearby Quinte West, Belleville police have not released any other details or spoken about a possible motive in the shooting. They have deferred questions to the SIU, which is called to investigate when interactions with police result in serious injury or death. 

The SIU said the suspect was armed with a shotgun when he opened fire at the police officer, and came within about half a block of the synagogue. 

When asked at a press conference on Monday whether there was any evidence the shooting was a “terrorist attack aimed at the Jewish community,” SIU spokesperson Kristy Denette said she would be speculating, but “common sense would say that probably was the case.”

She stressed that aspect of the investigation is not the SIU’s jurisdiction.

The synagogue’s president, Norman Weddum, said he struggled to understand why someone who’d had no contact with the congregation in the past would want to harm them.

“We’re waiting, like everyone else, for press releases to find out what the connection is,” Weddum said in an interview Tuesday morning. 

Weddum shouted a warning about an active shooter and told everyone to get down immediately after hearing loud bangs on Sunday, he said. Moments later, a spray of bullets pierced the tinted glass window facing the street and struck the opposite wall, he said.

He praised the officer for his quick reaction in a crisis. “If he hadn’t been there … you probably wouldn’t be talking to me right now,” Weddum said. 

The SIU was still at the scene Tuesday morning, and Weddum said repairing the damage to the building will be his top priority after investigators leave. The synagogue is also accelerating its plans to install security film on windows and putting up security cameras following the attack, he said.

“We want to get back into having services, and we want to get back in the running programs, and get back to a normal life and operations,” he said. 

“If anything can ever be normal again, I don’t know, but that’s our goal.”

Some other synagogues in Ontario are also reviewing safety measures in light of the shooting.

Phil David, the executive director of the Beth Tzedec synagogue in Toronto, said they have been in touch with police and the Jewish Security Network to go over the current security protocols.

“Incidents such as the one in Belleville are heartbreaking and unsettling for Jewish communities across Canada. They remind us why security, vigilance, and strong partnerships with law enforcement remain so important,” he said in a written statement. 

David said he can’t publicly discuss the details of the security measures in place at Beth Tzedec but stressed they are under continuous evaluation. 

“The reality is that no synagogue wants to be talking about security. We want to be talking about prayer, learning, celebration, and community,” he said. “But in today’s environment, protecting those experiences has become an essential responsibility.”

The Belleville shooting comes after a string of violent incidents that have taken place at or near Canadian synagogues and Jewish institutions in the last few years, including shots fired overnight at synagogues in Toronto and Vaughan, Ont., last spring.

Liberal MP Anthony Housefather, who served as special adviser on Jewish community issues and antisemitism under former prime minister Justin Trudeau, said Tuesday that all governments need to take more action.

“One of the things I’m pushing very hard for now is a provincial-territorial meeting of the ministers of justice and public safety to discuss how antisemitism and law enforcement is handled in Canada, and how police need to be properly trained,” he said, adding that the Belleville police officer was “incredibly brave” and likely saved many lives. 

“Prosecutors need to be properly trained, judges need to get properly trained under new laws, and enforcement has to actually happen,” Housefather said.

Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed gratitude to the Belleville constable “for his heroic actions” and said the country stands in solidarity with members of the Sons of Jacob synagogue and the wider community. 

“We stand against all manifestation of hate against communities and condemn this violence,” he said Tuesday during a press conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 22, 2026.

-With files from Jordan Omstead and Paola Loriggio in Toronto, Catherine Morrison in Ottawa and Kelly Geraldine Malone in New York.