MONTREAL — A 17-year-old boy facing charges he intended to carry out an attack on behalf of Islamic State will remain detained after making a brief appearance Thursday at Montreal's youth courthouse on terrorism charges.
The teen, whose identity cannot be made public because he is a minor, was arrested a day earlier by the RCMP.
He faces three charges — providing or making available property or services for terrorist purposes; participating in the activity of a terrorist group; and facilitating a terrorist activity.
The federal Crown prosecutor in the case, Mark Cigana, opposes his release and has filed a notice that he intends to seek an adult sentence for the teen, rather than the maximum sentences under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
The Crown noted the maximum sentence on the facilitation charge carries a maximum 14-year sentence, while the other two carry a 10-year maximum sentence. Sentences would be far shorter if the teenager was tried under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
Three security personnel were on hand monitoring the teenager, who was wearing a white dress shirt for his first court appearance on Thursday.
The boy's mother sat in the front row of the courtroom for the proceedings. A uniformed RCMP officer was also in attendance, while a few other officers were visible in the courthouse hallway.
At one point, Quebec court Judge Martine Nolin addressed the accused, who appeared to keep his eyes trained away from the proceedings.
"You don't seem to be listening to me, but I'll speak anyways," the youth court judge said explaining he would remain detained. "If ever the words I'm saying reach you, all the better."
The case was scheduled to return to court Monday to set a date for a bail hearing.
Cigana said he challenged the release because the Crown believes there's a risk the teenager would fail to appear in court, that he could commit a crime and that his release would undermine public confidence in the justice system.
The RCMP arrested the teen about 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The police force said the youth had pledged allegiance to Islamic State and was ready to carry out at least one attack on behalf of the terrorist group. Police said he intended to acquire weapons such as AK-47s for the attack.
"He made those comments on social media stating that he wished to attack various groups of people," Cpl. Érique Gasse said in an interview on Wednesday. Police had described the comments as disturbing.
Police had opened an investigation in April and the RCMP said the public was never in danger.
Defence lawyer Tiago Murias said he had no information about the case against his client and hoped to have a summary ahead of the next court date.
"I don't have the evidence, my colleague explained the reasons," Murias told the court.
Sources close to the case said there was an altercation between the accused and an officer in detention on Wednesday afternoon.
But the federal prosecutor said as of Thursday morning, no complaint had been filed regarding the alleged incident.
The RCMP had said Wednesday the young man was arrested without incident.
Police were asked whether they moved in for a specific reason on Wednesday.
"We gathered enough evidence today to proceed," Gasse said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2025.
Sidhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press
