Re: Muhammad Mughal, 2026 CanLII 18256

Re: Muhammad Mughal

ORB File No: 6757

Hearing held on: Thursday, December 18, 2025

Place of hearing: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

Pursuant to: Section 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code

Before:

Alternate Chairperson: Ms. S. Kert

Members: Dr. T. Verny Dr. G. Nexhipi Hon. C. Nelson Mr. W. Apted

Parties Appearing:

Accused: Muhammad Mughal Counsel: Ms. M. Addie

The person in charge of hospital: Counsel: Ms. M. Warner

Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Ms. G. Meyers

REASONS FOR DISPOSITION

(Dated March 4, 2026)

Introduction

1. On May 5, 2015, Mr. Muhammad Mughal was found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder on charges of assault with a weapon, and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, both contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada (“Criminal Code”).

2. Mr. Mughal is subject to a Disposition of the Ontario Review Board (the “Board”), dated December 30, 2024, which orders that he be detained at the Forensic Service of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto (“CAMH”) with privileges up to living in the community in accommodation approved by the person in charge.

3. On December 18, 2025, the Board convened a hearing at CAMH to conduct the annual review of the current Disposition.

4. Mr. Mughal was not feeling well and attended by telephone. There were no objections. Mr. Mughal’s father attended by video conference from Pakistan.

5. A Hospital Report, dated October 15, 2025 (the "Hospital Report"), was entered as Exhibit 1.

6. The issue at this hearing was whether Mr. Mughal is a significant threat to public safety, as defined in s. 672.5401 of the Criminal Code. If so, the necessary and appropriate Disposition in the circumstances must be determined, bearing in mind the factors enunciated in s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code.

7. For the reasons set out below and based on the expert evidence before it, the Board concluded that Mr. Mughal continues to present a significant threat to the safety of the public. The Board ordered that the necessary and appropriate Disposition in the circumstances is a continuation of the current Detention Order with the addition of a travel condition as outlined below.

Current Psychiatric Diagnoses

8. Schizophrenia;

Stimulant Use Disorder (in remission in a controlled setting).

Index Offences

9. The circumstances giving rise to the index offences are extracted from last year's Board Reasons, as follows:

“On January 13th, 2015, at approximately 11:00 pm, the victim, MK (a taxi driver with Beck taxi company), picked up the accused, Mohammad Mughal, at 2731 Danforth Avenue in the city of Toronto. At this time, the accused requested he be driven to Pearson International Airport located at 6301 Silver Dart Drive, in the city of Mississauga.

While enroute to the above location, at approximately 11:30 pm, the accused demanded that the victim drive faster. When the victim refused the accused used 3-inch bladed knife to strike the victim on the right shoulder. The accused then held the blade to the victim’s throat. The victim subsequently drove to the area of Dixie Road and Drew Road where he escaped the vehicle while stopped at a traffic light. The victim called police who later attended and located the accused.

On January 14th, 2015, at approximately 12:08 am, the accused was arrested for assault with a weapon…The victim suffered soreness to his right shoulder as a result of this incident.”

Background

10. Mr. Mughal’s background is outlined in the Hospital Report, and is accurately summarized in last year’s Reasons:

“Mr. Mughal was born in Pakistan and came to Canada in 2003 to pursue postsecondary education. He completed three years of a business administration degree at York University before noticing symptoms of illness.

He is financially supported by his family and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP), and he is capable with respect to managing his financial affairs. He is incapable of consent to psychiatric treatment; his father is his substitute decision maker.

Mr. Mughal’s first psychiatric admission was in January 2012. He was brought to hospital by police due to aggression and unstable behaviour in the family home. His discharge diagnosis was major depressive disorder with psychotic features and possible amphetamine abuse. He was brought to hospital again by police in late 2012. He was also brought to hospital by police five times throughout 2014 and was diagnosed with schizophrenia and prescribed antipsychotic medications. Mr. Mughal had no criminal justice involvement prior to the index offence.

Mr. Mughal was known to seek and abuse prescription stimulants and tested positive for methamphetamine during a hospital admission. Since Mr. Mughal’s admission to CAMH in 2015, he has remained abstinent from alcohol and illicit substances but was noted to continue “to present at times as substance seeking for stimulants and benzodiazepines.”

In December 2022, Mr. Mughal began taking clozapine. Within a few months, his active psychotic symptoms decreased, as did mood and somatic symptoms. He became much less confrontational and more compliant with rules. Despite the improvements, Mr. Mughal continued to lack motivation and reported feeling sleepy. He began taking Adderall in July 2023.

Although Mr. Mughal reported residual symptoms of auditory hallucinations and thought interference, the impacts were minimal, and he gained insight into his mental illness and acknowledged the benefit of clozapine.”

Course Since Last Disposition

11. For most of the past year, Mr. Mughal resided on a General Forensic Unit. He remained incapable of consenting to treatment. His father acted as his Substitute Decision Maker. Mr. Mughal was recently discharged on December 2, 2025, to appropriate community housing and his case was transferred to a Forensic Outpatient Team.

Evidence at the Hearing

12. The Board heard evidence from Dr. D. Jaiswal, the author of the Hospital Report and Mr. Mughal’s treating psychiatrist until his recent discharge into the community. Dr. Kung is now Mr. Mughal’s psychiatrist.

13. Dr. Kung meets with Mr. Mughal once every two weeks. Mr. Mughal is clinically stable, had no behavioural problems and there has been no substance abuse in the past year. Dr. Jaiswal told the Board that when Mr. Mughal’s father returns from Pakistan, the hospital will be looking to approve further overnight passes to his residence.

14. Mr. Mughal’s transition to his new community residence has gone smoothly. His new residence has pros and cons in the sense that Mr. Mughal is content as he likes having more flexible rules. He likes being in the community, but his residence has a number of elderly co-residents, making social interaction more difficult.

15. Mr. Mughal’s father asked the team to explore the feasibility of travel to Pakistan, but the team has concerns, including the possibility of rapid decompensation in the event of medication non-adherence. However, given that Mr. Mughal has a brother in Calgary, the team is supportive of up to seven days’ travel to Alberta in the company of an approved person with an approved itinerary. This travel privilege will be a motivating factor for Mr. Mughal and will enable the team to test Mr. Mughal’s adherence to treatment. It will also be a test of his clinical stability. The expanded travel privilege will allow the team to test for future international travel.

16. In answer to a question from Ms. Addie, Dr. Jaiswal told the Board that Mr. Mughal’s father is an approved person and that, during the past year, Mr. Mughal had spent a number of overnight visits with him. Dr. Jaiswal also testified that travel in Ontario could gradually be expanded for up to seven days and this would be a good test for further expansion to Alberta.

17. In answer to a Board member’s question, Dr. Jaiswal pointed out that it is still very early days for Mr. Mughal in the community. He suffers from treatment resistant schizophrenia and still has psychotic episodes. His mental health remains brittle, and he is quite sensitive to stress.

18. In answer to another question from a Board member, Dr. Jaiswal testified that the residence staff does not administer Mr. Mughal’s medications but that his medication adherence will be monitored through blood testing.

19. No further evidence was presented.

Submissions

20. Ms. Warner submitted that Mr. Mughal had a positive year and commended him for his transition to community housing and his connection to a new team. She submitted that the necessary and appropriate Disposition remained a Detention Order with privileges up to and including community living approved by the person in charge. In addition, Ms. Warner stated that the hospital would recommend travel within Canada (not just Alberta and Ontario) for a period of up to seven days with an approved person on acceptance of an approved itinerary. The Crown agreed with the hospital. Ms. Addie joined the hospital and the Crown and stated that congratulations were in order as a recognition of Mr. Mughal’s hard work and excellent year.

Conclusion

21. Having heard and considered the entirety of the evidence, as well as the submissions from the parties, the Board agrees with the joint submission: Mr. Mughal remains a significant threat to the safety of the public, and the necessary and appropriate disposition is the Detention Order with privileges as recommended by all the parties.

22. In Winko, the Supreme Court outlined that, in coming to the conclusion on the issue of significant risk, a Review Board should closely examine a range of evidence, including: the circumstances of the original offence; the past and expected course of the accused’s treatment; the present state of the NCR accused’s medical condition; the NCR accused’s own plans for the future; the support existing for the NCR accused in the community; and most importantly, the recommendations provided by experts who examined the NCR accused. In coming to our conclusion in this matter, the Board relies on the uncontroverted expert evidence of Dr. Jaiswal, in addition to the documentary evidence before us.

23. Mr. Mughal suffers from a treatment-refractory, brittle form of schizophrenia.

24. In particular, the Board relies on the Re-offence Scenario, set out in page 49 of the Hospital Report:

“Absent ORB involvement, the most likely re-offence scenario is one where Mr. Mughal is exposed to stressors, migrates to insufficient housing, falls away from treatment and supervision, and/or returns to substance use. These factors independently or in combination are likely to precipitate and acute episode of schizophrenia. In this context, he is likely to experience violent ideations and incorporate individuals in his proximity into his delusional beliefs, and likely to engage in violent behaviours in a manner similar to the index offence. Thus, on balance, he is a significant threat to public safety.”

25. In light of the Board’s finding that Mr. Mughal represents a significant threat to the safety of the public, it must now shape a disposition for the coming year. In considering the evidence, the Board notes that Mr. Mughal’s transition to the community is still in its very early stages. A Detention Order within the Forensic Service with privileges up to and including community housing approved by the person in charge remains the necessary and appropriate Disposition. In addition, the Board agrees that travel should be allowed throughout Canada for a period of up to seven days, accompanied by an approved person upon the approval by the person in charge of an itinerary. The Disposition takes into account risk, Mr. Mughal’s needs, and his reintegration into society.

26. The Board congratulates Mr. Mughal on his transition to the community and his good reporting year.

DATED this 4^th^ day of March, 2026, at the City of Toronto, in the Toronto Region.

Hon. C. Nelson

Legal Member

__________________

Office of the Registrar

Ontario Review Board