Wearing a white prisoner jump suit, his hands and feet shackled, he stared down at the floor and fidgeted, but did not speak.
The grandson of a decorated World War II veteran, Bissonnette appeared in a Facebook photo (his page has since been deactivated) as a boy dressed as an army cadet, a military leadership program for Canadian youths.
“The terrorists wanted to attack the spirit of peace and tolerance of the citizens of Quebec”, he said.
Inspired by French nationalist leader Marine Le Pen, Bissonnette began clashing with others online by attacking refugees and writing of his support for Le Pen and Trump, according to the Globe.
“Following this terrorist attack, I asked [Quebec] National Assembly to lower the flag to half-staff“, Quebec PM Philippe Couillard tweeted. In the neighboring province of Ontario, a mosque was set on fire in 2015, a day after an attack by gunmen and suicide bombers in Paris. Six people were killed and another 19 were wounded in the Sunday evening shooting. Eight others were wounded in the attack, including five who are in critical condition. The victims range in age from 39 to 60.
The mayor of Gatineau, Quebec, near Canada’s capital of Ottawa, said there would be increased police presence at mosques around his city, and in the U.S., the New York Police Department said it was stepping up patrols at mosques and other places of worship.
“Thirty-six million hearts are breaking with yours”, Justin Trudeau said. “People we knew since they were little kids”. “Diversity is our strength #WelcomeToCanada”. Police arrested two suspects.
Police officers patrol the perimeter near a mosque after a shooting in Quebec City, Jan. 29, 2017. It was accompanied by a note that read, “Bon appétit“, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation reported.
The White House pointed to the attack as an example of why Mr Trump’s policies were needed. “We condemn this terrorist attack on Muslims in a center of worship and refuge”. “We are called to say again that, whatever our beliefs are, as human beings we are all brothers and sisters, all equal in dignity”.
A father of four, the owner of a halal butcher near the mosque, was among those killed, said Pamela Sakinah El-hayet, a friend of one of the people at the mosque.