Toronto Police now call Jewish day school fire arson

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While Toronto Police have not said the fire at a Jewish day school was motivated by hate they now allege the blaze is being considered arson.

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And they have put a picture and name of their main suspect.

“Mark Anthony Dela-Cruz wanted for arson.” say Toronto Police.

The back section of the Leo Baeck Day School was torched early Tuesday morning, which caused damage to the structure and also resulted in smashed windows and the sprinkler system being activated.

From the beginning, investigators believed it was not a hate crime and that it was likely caused by an “unhoused person.”

Neighbours cited security camera footage which showed a man with bags hanging out around the school. Now police say “the suspect was using an exterior storage shed at the school for shelter” and “on July 29, the school noticed the suspect was storing belongings in the shed and removed them.”

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Then “on July 30, at approximately 3:30 a.m., the suspect returned to the shed to find his belongings removed” and was “then observed leaving the shed, and shortly after, a fire starts” in which the “fire and heat resulted in damage to the shed and broke several of the school’s windows.”

Dela-Cruz has not been charged and the allegations of arson against him have not been tested in court. He is considered to be innocent until proven guilty.

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Inspector Michelle Olszevski and media officer Stephanie Sayer have put out an appeal for anyone with information about his whereabouts to contact police at 416-808-1300, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or online at 222tips.com.

Getting him into custody is the first step and then finding out the motive is the next one.

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At this point police do not see it as related to anti-Semitism – something many in the Jewish community have been skeptical about. Sources tell the Sun this investigation is very much still alive, and all avenues will be pursued if necessary.

In other words, if something comes up that indicates there was more to this than what meets the eye, police will proceed accordingly.

It is not lost on police how concerned the Jewish community is at this time where so many schools, day care centres, businesses, synagogues and events have been vandalized. This came just 24 hours after a mysterious school bus fire nearby that was slated to take Jewish students to summer programs.

There’s just been too many acts of fire and vandalism in the Greater Toronto Area to pass it off as nothing.

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The St. Anne’s fire June 9th is another example. There has been no update on that investigation in which a fire destroyed the legendary church and the Group of Seven paintings on the ceiling.

Was it an electrical malfunction, arson or from a lightning strike?

One Toronto Fire source told the Sun there was so much damage from a fire that burned so hot that it has been difficult to locate the genesis of the early flames.

But that investigation continues. With dozens of churches burned down across Canada in recent years, it’s appropriate that it does.

And if people know where the suspect in the Jewish day school is, call police so they can put him before the justice system but also try to learn from him just what was the reason for this alleged arson.

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