TORONTO — The man police say opened fire on an officer outside Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville on Yom Kippur has died, Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit said Tuesday.An autopsy is set for Wednesday in Kingston.The SIU told the Canadian Press that Sean Ward, 29, died in hospital Monday night after being revived at the scene Sunday. Investigators say he arrived in a truck near Victoria Ave. and Bleecker Ave. about 7:10 p.m. armed with a shotgun and fired on Constable Jeff Smith, who had been parked outside at the synagogue’s request. Smith, a 13-year Belleville Police veteran, returned fire and a second officer also discharged a firearm; both men were struck. Smith remains in intensive care in critical but stable condition and faces a significant recovery.A Canadian Armed Forces spokesperson told CTV News a former member named Sean Ward matches the description of the suspect — he joined in July 2017, released in June 2022 at the rank of corporal, served as an infantry soldier with Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry, and did not deploy. The SIU continues to investigate the officers’ use of force due to the fact that weapons were discharged and a civilian has now died.
