ISIS recruiter being released from prison still holds ‘extremist views’

An ISIS recruiter who is being released from prison remains radicalized and poses a danger to the public, according to a Parole Board of Canada decision.

The ruling obtained by Global News said that while Ashton Larmond was now eligible for statutory release, special conditions were needed to protect public safety.

Larmond was arrested during a 2015 RCMP counterterrorism operation. He has now served two-thirds of his sentence and therefore must be released from custody.

But the parole board said it was ordering five restrictions on him for the remainder of his sentence. They include monitoring of his phone use and finances.

“While you have gained improved insight through program participation and counseling with the institutional imam, you continue to hold extremist views, which is problematic for the purposes of risk mitigation and public safety,” the board wrote.

The decision was publicly released on Monday.

As recently as March, Larmond punched a fellow inmate in the face and then kneeled on him and struck him again, breaking his nose, which the board said showed he remained “comfortable with using instrumental violence.”

The 35-year-old Ottawa resident must also enroll in a treatment program and live at a “community-based residential facility or psychiatric facility approved by the Correctional Service of Canada.”

Dozens of Canadians joined the terrorist groups like the Islamic State. While many overseas, others were arrested in Canada either before they could leave or after returning.

But as their prison terms have come to an end, some have been coming out of Canada’s prisons without having abandoned their violent extremist beliefs.

One of Canada’s first convicted terrorists, Said Namouh, has been behind bars since 2007 but shows “no signs of de-radicalization,” the parole board wrote in December.

While Namouh’s parole was denied, others have reached the limit of their sentences, prompting the parole board to place restrictions on them due to concerns that they have not fully deradicalized during their years of incarceration.

Get breaking National news

Get breaking Canada news delivered to your inbox as it happens so you won’t miss a trending story.

Larmond’s release comes amid a renewed recruitment push by ISIS, particularly among youths, which has resulted in a surge in arrests by the RCMP over the past three years.

The Canadian Security Intelligence Service wrote in its most recent annual report that ISIS, also known as Daesh, remained a threat due to its ability to inspire recruits based in Canada.

“CSIS is increasingly concerned by Daesh’s reach into Canada and Western countries and the growing potential of Daesh-enabled or directed attacks in Canada and Western countries,” the report said.

Along with his twin brother Carlos, Larmond intended to travel to Syria to join ISIS. Instead, they were arrested along with a third suspect following a police undercover operation called Project Slipstream.

In 2016, Larmond pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 17 years.

As his release date approached, Larmond told the parole board he hoped to work in the food industry or at a hardware store, and to fundraise for groups that help “people of the Muslim faith who are suffering.”

But the board ruled that his potential for reintegrating into society was “low” and he did not have a viable release plan. Without conditions on his release, he would “present an undue risk to society.”

The conditions he must follow also include having no contact or communication with anyone involved in criminal activity.

“You associated with those who have pro-criminal and extremist religious ideological views. Associating with such individuals can increase the possibility of you re-offending in the future,” the decision read.

Stewart.Bell@globalnews.ca