Montreal Synagogue Firebomber Says $15,000 Plot Was Drug-Fueled

Mohamed Ilyess Akodad, who pleaded guilty to the December 2024 Congregation Beth Tikvah firebombing in Dollard-des-Ormeaux, told a Montreal sentencing hearing between 02:18 and 02:23 IDT that he was promised $15,000 for a mission against two buildings and a car. He said drug use, not antisemitism, drove him; he says he received $3,000 after refusing to finish the second fire, while prosecutors seek two years and the defense seeks home confinement before a September 10 decision. SPVM confirms the synagogue arson arrest and nearby Jewish-community vandalism, while B'nai Brith Canada links the attack to repeated post-October 7 assaults on Beth Tikvah. Jewish communities should hear the defendant's claim carefully but still demand full accountability, synagogue protection and answers about who commissioned the attack.