Police officer wounded in shooting near Ontario synagogue on Yom Kippur

A police officer was shot and wounded near a synagogue in Ontario, Canada, on Sunday evening during an exchange of gunfire with an armed man as congregants gathered to mark Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, officials said. Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit said a man was in the hospital “in life threatening condition” and that the officer was injured after the shooting near Sons of Jacob synagogue in Belleville, around 115 miles northeast of Toronto. The president of Sons of Jacob synagogue, Norm Weddum, told CNN the officer saved the lives of everyone who had gathered inside and that the building had been riddled with bullets. Authorities have not yet said what led to the shooting. Weddum said the officer had been hired to protect the congregation that day. The officer was parked nearby in an unmarked vehicle and made contact with the shooter as he approached the building, he said. The synagogue’s president described hearing a series of bangs as he ushered people into the sanctuary, after which he and others went toward the front door to investigate. “That’s when we heard it again –– ‘bang, bang, bang’ and they were very loud this time so we realized it was definitely shots being fired,” he said. “We all ran back, I closed the doors of the auditorium and I yelled out ‘everybody get down.’” Weddum said bullets sprayed through the stain glass windows and across the room as worshipers crouched on the floor in fear, some calling 911. “We were on the floor for what felt like ten minutes of gunfire but in reality, it was a few minutes. There were over 20 bullet holes in our windows.” No one inside the synagogue was injured but all Yom Kippur services were canceled, he added. Authorities are expected to hold a press conference from the scene at 11 a.m. Monday. Earlier, the Belleville Police Service said an officer “encountered an individual” near Bleecker Avenue and Victoria Avenue around 7:10 p.m. The Sons of Jacob Synagogue sits at the intersection. “The officer and the individual sustained injuries and were transported to the hospital,” the statement said, without providing further details. York Regional Police, which patrols communities north of Toronto, said it would step up patrols and keep officers visible “where people gather to worship,” in response to the shooting. Weddum said when the gunshots stopped, he stepped outside the building to find a heavy police presence and several officers tending to the injured officer and another individual being put into an ambulance. Police have since cordoned off the area and are conducting an investigation, he added. “We’re not sure when we are going to get access back to the building. We are all upset but it’s not going to deter us. We will reopen and we will have services again,” he said. Ontario Premier Doug Ford responded to news of the shooting, saying in a statement: “We owe an immense debt of gratitude to this brave officer and to all the first responders who acted so quickly to keep the community safe.” “My thoughts are with the Jewish community in Belleville and across Ontario, who have every right to gather and worship safely and without fear,” Ford added. CNN has reached out to Belleville police and Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit for more information. This story has been updated with additional information.