Toronto terror suspect came to Canada in 2018, became citizen last spring

Mostafa Eldidi (left) and his father, Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi, appear virtually in court on Aug. 1, 2024. (CTV News Toronto/John Mantha)

A man who is facing terror charges for allegedly plotting an attack in Toronto with his son came to Canada in 2018 and became a citizen just months before his arrest in July.

Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc provided a House of Commons committee with a detailed timeline of the pair's immigration file on Wednesday.

Ahmed Fouad Mostafa Eldidi, 62, and his son Mostafa Eldidi, 26, were arrested in Richmond Hill, Ont., and face nine terrorism charges including conspiracy to commit murder on behalf of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

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The RCMP announced the charges on July 31 and said the two men were "in the advanced stages of planning a serious, violent attack in Toronto."

At a meeting of the public safety and national security committee, LeBlanc confirmed the elder Eldidi arrived to Canada in February 2018 and made a refugee claim in June of that year.

He became a citizen in May 2024, and was arrested at the end of July.

The father has been the subject of particular scrutiny after Global News reported that he allegedly appeared in an ISIS video in 2015, and still went on to obtain Canadian citizenship.

The Canadian Press has not independently reviewed the video.

Ted Gallivan, executive vice-president of the Canada Border Services Agency, told the committee that after media reporting, the agency obtained the video on the dark web.

"I can confirm through a review of the treatment of these individuals that that video wasn't available to the CBSA and officials who were screening the individual," Gallivan told the committee.

Aaron McCrorie, vice-president of intelligence and enforcement at CBSA, later added that the version of the video the agency obtained had only been available for two years.

The timeline provided by the federal government suggests there were risk indicators flagged on the father's immigration file, though no further details on the nature of those risks have been disclosed.

CBSA and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service conducted two comprehensive security screenings on the father and returned favourable recommendations both times.

Both men were born in Egypt.

LeBlanc said CSIS became aware of the threat posed by the two men in June and the minister was briefed on July 24.

The son, who is not a Canadian citizen, was first rejected for a study permit in July 2019.

He then entered Canada in Feb. 2020 on a U.S. student visa and applied for asylum.

Mostafa Eldidi obtained refugee status in July 2022.

Immigration Minister Marc Miller has said he plans to look into whether the father should have his Canadian citizenship revoked.

The son's Facebook page shows that he changed his profile picture to the Canadian flag in June 2021 and wrote, "fight for this flag till I die."

An individual commented on the post in Arabic saying, "you're going to get citizenship, don't worry."

"You understand everything," Eldidi responded.

The Canadian Press reached out to the individual who made the comment but has not received a response. The comment on Eldidi's post has since been deleted.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 28, 2024.