Schizophrenic man behind Toronto army recruiting centre knife attack approved for Mecca pilgrimage
A man found not criminally responsible on three counts of attempted murder for a March 2016 knife attack at a Canadian Forces Recruiting Centre in Toronto has been granted a three-week travel pass for Saudi Arabia and Somalia, despite the fact that he “continues to pose a significant threat to public safety.”
Ayanle Hassan Ali, who is Muslim, plans to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca with his father and meet a potential bride his dad found for him in Somalia.
He wants to travel abroad “to facilitate a meeting with a woman as his father has been working on arranging a possible marriage with a woman who resides in Somalia,” said a recent decision from the Ontario Review Board (ORB).
“Mr. Ali has advised that this is not uncommon in his culture, and the marriage would only proceed if both parties were agreeable. He is hopeful he will be able to travel to Somalia over the upcoming reporting year for an introductory meeting with the woman.”
Ali’s doctor testified that his patient’s “faith and religious beliefs continue to be very important to him, and he attends his mosque weekly, and he prays five times daily,” according to a recent decision from the independent tribunal that regularly reviews the status of individuals found not criminally responsible due to mental disorder.
“He and his father have planned for a religious ritual of Umrah pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Mr. Ali is studying to memorize the Koran and attends the mosque by his father’s house daily to meet with his teacher. He is hopeful that his tutor may assist him in securing a volunteer position at a local school to tutor in math or French.”
Ali, who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, was found not criminally responsible (NCR) in May 2018 due to a mental disorder on the three attempted murder charges, as well as two counts of assault causing bodily harm, two counts of assault with a weapon, and possession of weapon for a dangerous purpose.
The tribunal heard that on March 14, 2016, “Ali entered the Canadian Forces Recruiting Centre in Toronto and immediately attacked the corporal who was seated at the entrance. Mr. Ali repeatedly punched the corporal in the head, and then took a large kitchen knife from a folder he was carrying and lunged at the corporal, slashing and stabbing at him with the knife, causing a three-inch gash to the corporal’s arm,” said the April 15 decision.
“The attack was interrupted by a petty officer who armed himself with a chair, using it to shield himself and force Mr. Ali away from the corporal. Mr. Ali tried to attack the petty officer with the knife but could not because of the chair.”
Ali then began chasing a sergeant, “swinging his knife at her on more than one occasion, barely missing the back of her neck.”
He “encountered another sergeant who had slipped and fallen in the chaos. Mr. Ali was observed to slash and stab the sergeant several times in the upper torso and head while he was on the ground (a witness stated that the tip of the knife was facing the ceiling at this time).”
Ali was “ultimately cornered,” said the decision. “Items were thrown at him (including a photocopier) and he was tackled in attempts to disarm him, but he continued to come at staff with the knife.”
Numerous military personnel eventually pinned him to the ground and got control of his knife.
“Ali’s iPod was noted to have an open file of the Quran Chapter two, and Mr. Ali was heard muttering a prayer as attempts were made to subdue him,” said the decision. “Ali was then stripped of his clothing down to his underwear to ensure he had no secondary device on his person. None was found. The whole attack lasted less than one minute. Mr. Ali was described as running around in a frantic manner.”
The ORB granted Ali a conditional discharge in March 2025 that requires him to live with his mother, report to the person in charge of Toronto’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), or their delegate, once every two weeks, and take his medication.
A lawyer for CAMH testified at his recent ORB hearing that “Ali continued to pose a significant threat to the safety of the public and that the necessary and appropriate disposition was a continuation of the existing conditional discharge save and except for the addition of a discretionary travel pass for up to three weeks on an itinerary approved by the (person in charge) to allow for travel to Saudi Arabia and/or Somalia, accompanied by an approved person.”
The Crown and Ali’s lawyer supported that position.
The 38-year-old was born in Montreal and grew up in Toronto, said the decision. “He graduated from high school and attended the University of Toronto and the University of Calgary. He did not finish a degree.”
Ali’s “family reported that he had been symptomatic for some time prior to” the recruiting centre attack, said the decision.
“According to the hospital report, it appeared that as a teenager, he experienced obsessions and compulsions and had difficulty concentrating in school. He began to hear voices, had ideas of reference, and was consistently concerned about the government watching him. He no longer spent time with friends, did not leave the house, and spent long periods of time alone in his room staring at the wall. He threw out almost everything from his room including his mattress and spent hours copying books.”
Ali “was detained at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton from 2018 to 2023 following his NCR finding. He was compliant with medications and was described as a ‘model patient,’” said the decision.
“Some residual symptoms were noted, including delusional thought content where he felt he was being monitored by the government. He was described as having fluctuating symptoms and partial insight.”
In March 2023, the ORB ordered Ali to be transferred to CAMH. He was discharged to live with his father in the community in June 2023. “At that time, he was treated with a long-acting injectable of antipsychotic medication.”
Ali later moved to his mother’s place, where he now lives with her and one of his sisters. The tribunal heard his mother “has a history of untreated schizophrenia.”
His psychiatrist testified that Ali “had a positive year in the community. He continued to reside at his mother’s home with his sister and remained close with all of his family members.”
This past February Ali asked to change to a daily oral medication for his schizophrenia because the injections were painful.
Ali advised his psychiatrist “that he was confident that he could be disciplined in his medication compliance as he would coordinate his medication adherence with his ritual of rising for prayers daily.”
He’s much happier on the oral medication, Ali’s psychiatrist testified. “No changes in his mental state have been observed since his transition to oral medication; however, the doctor cautioned that these are early days.”
Despite taking his medication, Ali “experiences intermittent low-grade paranoid ideation and/or fleeting persecutory thoughts and concerns,” said the ORB decision.
“The Hospital Report indicates ‘These symptoms have appeared to decrease over the past reporting year, being shorter in duration and of less influence upon him. While these thoughts have been delusional in nature, he was able to reflect on them and manage his symptoms with insight. Symptoms, if they occur, are fleeting.’”
The ORB reports that “Ali recognizes that he has a major mental illness that requires treatment with medication, and he understands the importance of compliance. He is able to assess and reality-test the mild breakthrough psychotic symptoms that he occasionally experiences.”
Ali has “expressed remorse” for “the harm he caused” to the soldiers he attacked at the recruiting centre, said the decision.
“His regret has reinforced his commitment to ongoing treatment and maintaining his well-being, as he is determined not to repeat such violent behaviours.”
According to Ali’s Hospital Report, “The final risk judgement is of a low risk of violence under the continuation of a conditional discharge. Risk would rise to moderate to high if he were granted an absolute discharge, given uncertainty with change to oral medication and the final steps to occupational and social reintegration hurdles which are of great importance to him. Although frequency of violent behavior is likely low, re-emergence of psychotic symptoms could result in an increasing risk of serious violence.”
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