ReportYom Kippur Synagogue Attack: Officer Shot Saving 25, Gunman DeadAired September 23, 2026 at 5:17 AM UTCWritten September 23, 2026 at 5:20 AM UTCRead the write-upThis storyTranscript · LOADING0:11A gunman fired on an officer guarding a packed synagogue prayer service.0:15About twenty-five worshippers were inside for Yom Kippur's opening prayers, shielded0:20only by an officer at the door.0:21That officer remains in intensive care and the gunman is dead, with motives still0:25unexplained.0:26Did he come to kill worshipers inside, or to kill police outside?0:30And what kept everyone inside alive?0:32The attack centered on Sons of Jacob Synagogue at 211 Victoria Avenue at Bleecker0:37Avenue in Belleville, Ontario, about 200 kilometers east of Toronto.0:41About 25 people were inside for the evening service marking the start of Yom Kippur.0:45The congregation counts about 60 members from Belleville, Trenton, and surrounding0:50areas.0:50Founded in 1905 and affiliated with the Conservative movement, it is the only0:54synagogue serving Belleville and the wider Quinty region.0:57A paid-duty Belleville officer was stationed outside at the synagogue's request.1:01Routine practice for holidays.1:03No one inside the building was injured.1:05The gunman arrived in a truck armed with a shotgun and fired first at the officer1:09stationed outside.1:11Two officers discharged firearms in return.1:13Up to 30 rounds were exchanged over roughly half a block.1:16The synagogue building took roughly two dozen bullet holes, including a stained1:20glass window struck, and nearby homes and vehicles were hit.1:22Constable Jeff Smith, a 13-year Belleville Police Service veteran assigned to the1:27Emergency Response Unit, was struck in the face and upper body while preventing the1:31gunman from reaching the building.1:32He fired back despite being wounded.1:34He remains in critical condition in intensive care, now critical but stable, with a1:39significant recovery expected.1:40The gunfire broke out about 7 p.m.1:42on Sunday, September 20.1:44The gunman was 29-year-old Sean Ward of Quinty West, Ontario.1:48First identified with the first name spelled Sean.1:50He was revived at the scene with life-threatening injuries and taken to hospital.1:54He died on the night of September 21 in a hospital in Kingston.1:57A post-mortem was scheduled for September 23rd in Kingston.2:01That death replaces the earlier status of critically wounded.2:04Inside, the evening service dissolved into confusion and shouting.2:08The synagogue president ordered everyone to get on the floor and crouch down.2:11One member present with his wife said it nearly became a massacre.2:15Outside, the façade, the stained glass, the sidewalk, and cars over half a block2:19showed where bullets had gone.2:21Ward served as an infantry corporal in the Canadian Armed Forces from July 2017 to2:25June 2022 with Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, an Alberta-based2:30regiment.2:31He did not deploy and was removed from military service.2:34How and when he moved between Alberta and the Belleville area, and how he obtained2:38the shotgun, have not been established.2:41Motive and targeting remain undetermined and unclear.2:43Investigators leave open whether the congregation inside or the officers outside2:47were specifically targeted, and what drove Ward.2:50That caution stands apart from characterizations as a hate crime, an anti-Semitic2:54attack, and a massacre in the making.2:56Ontario's Special Investigations Unit is leading the investigation into the2:59officers' use of force under files 26 OFI 452 and 26 OFD 452,3:06with investigators sent to the scene the night of the shooting.3:08Belleville Police is running a parallel criminal investigation into the suspect's3:12actions.3:13Formal findings on justification, policy, including body-worn cameras and criminal3:17liability, await the post-mortem, the watchdog findings, and the parallel3:21investigation?3:21Ontario's Solicitor General traveled to Belleville on September 22.3:25Prime Minister Mark Carney condemned the shooting on the holiest night of the Jewish3:29calendar and said Jewish people must be able to worship safely.3:32Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he was disgusted and expressed support for the Jewish3:36community and the wounded officer.3:38The synagogue president called the wounded officer a hero who saved lives.3:41What is known is the officer's stand kept the gunmen outside the building.3:45What drove Ward to that door remains unknown.3:48Remaining Yom Kippur services were cancelled, officials confirmed no injuries3:52inside, and Ontario police increased patrols at Jewish sites while Smith remains3:56hospitalized.Explore with HeyDexFollow via RSSThe shortThe short ↗