White Muslim convert plotting to blow up public place in Canada is shot dead after detonating bomb in dramatic SWAT team raid
Aaron Driver, 24, had detonated an explosive device and was allegedly about to set off another when police shot him
AN ISIS fanatic has been shot dead by police after allegedly planning to carry out a suicide bombing in a public area.
ISIS fanatic Aaron Driver was confronted by police in a dramatic stand off after he detonated an explosive device that injured himself and another person in Strathroy, Ontario.
But the 24-year-old was fatally shot by police with officers saying Driver .
Canadian police said they received information of a potential terrorist act earlier on Wednesday and launched the operation to capture Driver.
The incident was also said to have stemmed from a video Driver made in which he threatened an attack on a "major city", intelligence sources told Reuters.
An internal government memo obtained by CTV News, said Driver had allegedly planned to use an IED to cause mass casualties by carrying out a suicide bombing mission in a busy public space.
Driver was known to authorities as an ISIS supporter.
His family confirmed Aaron had been involved in the attack with his father Wayne Driver : "Yes, it was Aaron, my son, who was shot and killed earlier today.
"Our worst nightmare has come true. As sad and shocked as I am, it doesn't surprise me that it has come to this. Aaron was a good kid who went down a dark path and couldn't find the light again."
He said he was told by authorities that a taxi driver had been injured in the initial explosion.
Neighbours said they heard explosions and gunshots during the operation that involved SWAT teams and a bomb squad.
Mark and Julie Lagerwerf, who have lived in the area for 20 years, said they had just got home when police told them to go inside and stay there.
Mark Lagerwerf said: "It's surreal. I don't know how else to describe it. Shocking."
Other neighbours said there were about 25 marked and unmarked police cars in the area.
Aaron Driver, originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, had been arrested last year for supporting the Islamic State on social media.
He caught the attention of CSIS, Canada's spy agency, in October 2014 when tweeting support for ISIS under the alias Harun Abdourahman - praising the Canadian Parliament shooting by fanatic Michael Zehaf-Bibeau.
The 24-year-old was not charged but was placed on a peace bond in February, forcing him off social media and to not associate with any terrorist organisation, including ISIS.
Canadian news reported Driver had been born into a Christian family and struggled to cope after the death of his mother when he was just seven-years-old.
Driver told local media that he had turned from a devout Muslim to a radical after reading about the Middle East online.
In 2015, : "Seeing some of the things that happened in Syria, it infuriates you and it breaks your heart and the same time. And I think that if you know what's going on, you have to do something."
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Authorities have not yet released details about where Driver was planning on carrying out the alleged terrorist attack.
Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Ralph Goodale released a statement, saying he had discussed the situation with the Prime Minister to "confirm that public safety has been and continues to be properly protected".
He said: "There is no greater responsibility of the Government than to keep its citizens safe. Earlier today, the RCMP received credible information regarding a potential terrorist threat and took action to ensure public safety."
He said the public could be confident that authorities would "take the appropriate steps to ensure the safety of this country and its citizens.
"These agencies conducted themselves effectively in the circumstances that developed today."
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police released a statement, saying: "Earlier today, the RCMP received credible information of a potential terrorist threat. A suspect was identified and the proper course of action has been taken to ensure that there is no danger to the public's safety.
"The safety and security of Canadians is of the utmost importance to the RCMP and we take all such threats seriously. As this is still an unfolding matter and that the investigation is still underway, we are not able to provide further comment at this time."
Canada's National Terrorism Threat Level remains at "medium" where it has been since 2014.
Strathroy, Ontario, a small town about 140 miles southwest of Toronto.
Authorities urged people to contact the National Security Information Network if they saw any more suspicious or unusual behaviour.
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