The terror suspect who authorities allege wanted to unleash bloodshed in New York City was using the gay gambit to get into Canada as a refugee.
Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, 20, was arrested by the RCMP on Sept. 4 in Quebec not far from the U.S. border.
According to the FBI, the Pakistani — in Canada on a study permit — told undercover operatives he was plotting to “slaughter” as many Jews as possible in a massacre slated to take place around the first anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023 terror attack on Israel.
In addition, he allegedly claimed he was acting at the behest of the Islamic State death cult.
CBC News reports that a Mississauga immigration consultant who worked with Khan was stunned when he heard about the arrest, claiming his client did not show signs of extremism.
Fazal Qadeer said Khan was in the process of claiming refugee status on the basis of his sexual orientation. Same-sex interactions are forbidden in Pakistan.
Qadeer told CBC News: “He said he was gay.”
He added that Khan had recently had a “long” interrogation with Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada. But the network noted the refugee claim did not appear in a report from immigration officials last month.
Where or what he was studying in Canada, Qadeer did not know.
Khan applied for a Canadian study permit in March 2023, and was approved the following month and arrived in Toronto in June 2023.
Immigration officials claimed Khan’s file was not referred to CSIS and the Canada Border Services Agency because no risk factors were identified. However, the FBI says within five months of arrival, Khan caught the attention of an informant.
On social media, Khan expressed “his desire to carry out terrorist attacks in support” of ISIS. He allegedly encouraged undercover agents to procure AR-15s to carry out the attack, said to be a Jewish community centre in Brooklyn.
“If we succeed with our plan this would be the largest attack on U.S. soil since 9/11,” Khan allegedly wrote.
Authorities said Khan planned to vacate his Mississauga apartment on Sept. 1. He allegedly expected to become a martyr.
Khan is now on ice in a Montreal jail awaiting extradition to the U.S. He faces charges of attempting to provide material support and resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization, ISIS.
Khan’s Montreal lawyer recently told Reuters the alleged terrorist plans to fight the extradition request. Gaetan Bourassa said: “He is a young person, arrested, and we will see what is their proof to ask to be extradited.”
@HunterTOSun