Canadian suspected 'IS' sympathizer killed

Canadian officials have released scant details over the apparent killing late Wednesday of a man in rural Ontario suspected of having ties with violent extremists.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said in a brief statement that they had identified a suspect in a national security threat and taken action to ensure the safety of the public.

No further details were released.

But the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation identified the man as Aaron Driver, 24, originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba.

The London Free Press newspaper, citing family members, reported that Driver was shot and killed by police after he detonated a device, wounding himself and another person. That report could not be independently confirmed.

Winnipeg-based attorney Leonard Tailleur told The Canadian Press he was "shocked" to hear that his former client had been killed. "Saddened to hear that it had to end this way for him," he wrote.

Tailleur had represented Driver last year when a court order restricted his freedom over suspected ties to the self-styled "Islamic State" (IS) group.

Under controversial bail conditions, Driver was banned from using the internet or having any communication with the IS group, including having any object on his person that bore an IS group logo. He also was ordered to wear a GPS tracking device at all times.

The restrictive bail conditions – requiring constant surveillance in the absence of a criminal charge – drew criticism from legal rights groups. Canada last year expanded the power of its security agencies over the objections of civil libertarians.

Details of how Driver died have not been released though earlier the RCMP claimed it had halted a possible attack after receiving credible information of a potential terrorist threat.

Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale would only say that Canada's security agencies had acted appropriately.

"The RCMP, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service and other police and security agencies were involved in the operations," Goodale said in a statement. "These agencies conducted themselves effectively in the circumstances that developed today."

The apparently deadly police operation took place Wednesday night in the southern Ontario town of Strathroy, about 140 miles (225 kilometers) southwest of Toronto.

jar/kl (AP, Reuters)