TORONTO, Ont. — The Canadian being held by Israeli officials for allegedly being trained to kill Jews was a student at the Ontario Truck Driving School in Windsor, Ont.

Jamal Akkal, 23, a Palestinian-Canadian, was arrested as he was leaving Gaza for Canada on Nov. 1. He later confessed, according to Israeli officials, that he had been recruited by Hamas to conduct attacks in the U.S. and Canada.

Prior to the arrest, David Monk, also a student at the Ontario Driving School in Windsor, had alerted the RCMP to Akkal.

Monk said he alerted the RCMP because he was suspicious of Akkals’ motives for attending the school.

“He said he was taking the course so he could work on the weekend and go to school during the week. But it didn’t make sense to me, because the course cost over $4,000. It would take a year just to pay the truck driving course off,” said Monk. “But I certainly didn’t intend for him to end up being arrested in Israel. I just feel horrible about what’s happened to him. I hope he gets a fair trial.”

Ontario Truck Driving School President Gus Rahim said Akkal was a good student.

“His teacher wrote he was an excellent student and that any company would be lucky to have him as an employee.”