Ontario’s police watchdog says the man suspected of opening fire on a police officer outside a Belleville, Ont., synagogue on Sunday has died.
Belleville police have identified the man as 29-year-old Sean Ward of Quinte West.
The Special Investigations Unit says Ward died last night and an autopsy will be performed Wednesday in Kingston, Ont.
The Department of National Defence says its records show that a former Canadian Armed Forces member named Sean Ward, who was released in June 2022 at the rank of corporal, matches the description of the shooting suspect.
The SIU has said a man armed with a shotgun opened fire at a police officer stationed outside the Sons of Jacob synagogue on Sunday night, triggering a shootout that left him and the officer seriously injured.
The shooting took place at the start of Yom Kippur as people gathered to observe the holiest day on the Jewish calendar.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 22, 2026.
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