The fake bomb threat on Parliament Hill was aimed at organizers of a Sikh rally scheduled for Saturday, with four law enforcement sources telling Global News that the council was linked to “Sikh extremism”.
Manvir Singh and Parminder Singh, two organizers of an event in honor of the Sikh massacre in India in 1984, were the two suspects detained after police said they received “reliable” information about explosives in vehicles near the parliamentary section.
Read more: Fear of explosives in Parliament Hill stems from bad advice: sources
The two were later released without charge, and two sources said law enforcement did not believe they were a threat to national security.
Sources told Global News on Saturday night that a “major” investigation into national security was under way and linked to “Sikh extremists”.
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But two public safety sources acknowledged Sunday that no explosives had been found in the vehicles – one at the busy intersection of Slater and Metcalfe streets, the other in front of the Supreme Court building – and that there was no threat to the public.
The biggest question now is who submitted the explosives advice – which sources said was very detailed, including photos and license plate numbers – and why.
0:47 Parliament Hill is closed because of a police operation to deal with the “possible threat” Parliament Hill is closed because of a police operation to deal with the “possible threat”
The two men were part of the organizing committee for a “remembrance rally” organized by the United Sikh Front in Canada to commemorate the death of Sikhs in India amid political and civil unrest in June 1984.
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The planned rally was interrupted after someone informed the police about possible explosives near the Parliament.
Emergency call logs, reviewed by Global News, suggest that police detained a suspect on Slater and Metcalfe Streets at 1:42 p.m. and set up a perimeter around a vehicle. A little over an hour later, the first vehicle was cleared before police were alerted to a second vehicle near the Supreme Court. By 3:33 p.m., both vehicles had been cleared and no threat to the public had been identified.
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Read more: Canada “not ready” for growing threats to national security, warn former officials
“Following an investigation, no threat to public safety has been identified. At around 4 pm, the area was cleared, “the Ottawa Police Department wrote in a post on social media on Saturday night.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), which is responsible for gathering intelligence on threats to national security in Canada, told Global News that it had no information on the fear of explosives.
According to the Canadian Press, Parminder Singh said police apologized after his release and suggested they were acting on bad information.
Global News reported on Saturday that initial intelligence came from the Canadian Border Services Agency, which declined to confirm or deny involvement in the investigation.
There are now questions in the Canadian Security and Intelligence Community about the provision of intelligence and how it has been handled.
Correction: This article has been updated to clarify the purpose of the rally.
With files from Canadian Press.
© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
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