In Their Wisdom...

"[On March 14, 2016], Ali entered the Canadian forces Recruiting Centre in Toronto and immediately attacked the corporal who was seated at the entrance. Mr. Ali repeatedly punched the corporal in the head, and then took a large kitchen knife from a folder he was carrying and lunged at the corporal, slashing and stabbing at him with the knife, causing a three-inch gash to the corporal's arm."

"[A petty officer armed with a chair forced Ali away from the corporal. Ali then began chasing a sergeant] swinging his knife at her on more than one occasion, barely missing the back of her neck."

"[He] encountered another sergeant who had slipped and fallen in the chaos. Mr. Ali was observed to slash and stab the sergeant several times in the upper torso and head while he was on the ground. [Numerous military personnel eventually pinned him to the ground and got control of his knife]." 

Background addressed to a tribunal at the Ontario Review Board

Toronto police say a man walked into the federal building Monday and stabbed two members of the Canadian Armed Forces. (Natalie Kalata/CBC)

 

"Ali continued to pose a significant threat to the safety of the public and that the necessary and appropriate disposition was a continuation of the existing conditional discharge save and except for the addition of a discretionary travel pass for up to three weeks on an itinerary approved by the [person in charge] to allow for travel to Saudi Arabia and/or Somalia, accompanied by an approved person."

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto  

Born in Montreal, the now-38-year-old grew up in Toronto. Despite having attended the University of Toronto and University of Calgary, he came away from his academic experiences without a degree. The Ontario Review Board heard in a deposition from Ali's family that he had been symptomatic for a while before the attack at the recruiting centre. He was found not criminally responsible for the attack on the three counts of attempted murder at the Canadian Forces Recruiting Centre.

 

Ayanle Hassan Ali, 27, a Montreal-born suspect charged in a double stabbing at a Canadian Armed Forces recruiting centre in north Toronto, appeared in a Toronto court. (Pam Davies/CBC)

 

Ayanle Hassan Ali, of Somalian heritage, Muslim, had appealed to the board to allow him to go on a pilgrimage to Mecca with his father. The ultimate goal of the hajj for this man evidently is to meet a potential bride his father arranged for him in Somalia. According to Ali's doctor, his patient's "faith and religious beliefs continue to be very important to him, and he attends mosque weekly, and he prays five times daily" (likely the inspirational source of his jihadi violence) in the words of the independent tribunal that reviews the status of individuals found not criminally responsible as a result of mental disorder.

 

Diagnosed with schizophrenia, like his mother, his terrorist actions in March of 2016 found him not criminally responsible, citing his mental disorder that led to the three attempted murder attempts for which he was charged, along with two counts of assault with a weapon, and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. 

Ayanle Hassan Ali, shown in a police handout photo, was ordered to remain in custody following a court appearance - Toronto Police Service handout

 

"According to the hospital report, it appeared that as a teenager, he experienced obsessions and compulsions and had difficulty concentrating in school. He began to hear voices, had ideas of reference, and was consistently concerned about the government watching him. He no longer spent time with friends, did not leave the house, and spent long periods of time alone in his room staring at the wall. He threw out almost everything from his room including his mattress and spent hours copying books." 

Detained at St. Joseph's Health Care Hamilton from 2018 to 2023 as a result of the diagnosis of 'not criminally responsible', he was found to be compliant with his medications, and was described as a 'model patient'. Ali was ordered by the Ontario Review Board to be transferred in March 2023 to Toronto's Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. He was later discharged into the community to live with his father. "At that time, he was treated with a long-acting injectable of antipsychotic medication." More recently, in 2025 he moved again, to live with his mother and one of his sisters.

 

"Mr. Ali has advised that this [a parent arranging for a marriage partner from abroad] is not uncommon in his culture, and the marriage would only proceed if both parties were agreeable. He is hopeful he will be able to travel to Somalia over the upcoming reporting year for an introductory meeting with the woman." The Review Board agreed to grant Ayanle Hassan Ali's request to travel to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, giving him a three-week travel pass, their decision bypassing the reality that he "continues to pose a significant threat to public safety".

 

Ayanle Hassan Ali arrives in a police car at a Toronto court house on Tuesday, March 15, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

 

"The final risk judgement is of a low risk of violence under the continuation of a conditional discharge." "Risk would rise to moderate to high if he were granted an absolute discharge, given uncertainty with change to oral medication and the final steps to occupational and social reintegration hurdles which are of great importance to him."

"Although frequency of violent behavior is likely low, re-emergence of psychotic symptoms could result in an increasing risk of serious violence."

Hospital Patient Report