Re: Najbahat S. Gaji
ORB File No: 7969
Hearing held on: Monday, March 30, 2026
Place of hearing: Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care
Pursuant to: Section 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code
Before:
Alternate Chairperson: Ms. S. Clapp
Members: Dr. P.L. Darby
Dr. A. Gibas
Ms. C. Murray
Ms. B. Little
Parties Appearing:
Accused: Najbahat S. Gaji
Counsel: Mr. M. A. Reynolds
Person in charge of hospital: Representative: Ms. T. Newman
Attorney General of Ontario: Counsel: Ms. S. Curry
REASONS FOR DISPOSITION
(Dated April 14, 2026)
Introduction
On November 10, 2021, Mr. Najbahat Gaji was found not criminally responsible on account of mental disorder (“NCR”) on charges of assault with a weapon (x6), possession of weapon for dangerous purpose (x5), uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm (x3), assault (x2), assault causing bodily harm, and failure to comply with condition of release order, contrary to the Criminal Code of Canada (“Criminal Code”). Mr. Gaji is currently subject to a Disposition of the Ontario Review Board (“ORB” or “Board”) dated February 11, 2025, detaining him at Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care – High Secure Provincial Forensic Programs (“Waypoint” or the “hospital”). He has privileges up to and including hospital grounds privileges beyond the secure perimeter, escorted by staff.
On March 30, 2026, a panel of the Board convened to review Mr. Gaji’s Disposition pursuant to s. 672.81(1) of the Criminal Code. Mr. Gaji was not present for his hearing. He was represented by counsel, Mr. Mark A. Reynolds, who advised that Mr. Gaji had not provided detailed instructions and Mr. Gaji refuses to speak to him. He advised that Mr. Gaji did not attend last year’s hearing but, at that time, had instructed him to support the position of the hospital. Mr. Reynolds advised the Board that, since there has not been a substantial change in Mr. Gaji’s outlook on his situation this year, he intends to proceed on those same instructions. Mr. Reynolds requested permission for his client to be absent from the hearing. Under the circumstances the Board permitted Mr. Gaji to be absent from the hearing pursuant to s. 672.5(10)(a). Given that Mr. Gaji has not attended two consecutive ORB hearings, he is encouraged to attend next year. Mr. Reynolds advised the Board that this hearing was adjourned from January 2026 because he was requested by the Superior Court of Justice to reschedule Mr. Gaji’s hearing to permit him to be present in court for another client.
The Hospital Report with Update dated February 24, 2026, was marked as Exhibit 1.
The issues to be decided at the hearing were whether Mr. Gaji continues to represent a significant threat to the safety of the public as set out in s. 672.5401 of the Criminal Code, and, if so, what is the necessary and appropriate Disposition to manage that risk having regard to the criteria set out in s. 672.54 of the Criminal Code.
For the reasons set out below, the panel found that Mr. Gaji continues to pose a significant threat to public safety. The panel concluded that the necessary and appropriate Disposition, which is also the least onerous and least restrictive in the circumstances, is a continuation of the Detention Order with no change to the terms.
Position of the Parties
At the outset of the hearing, the parties were asked for their initial without prejudice positions. On behalf of the hospital, Ms. Newman took the position that Mr. Gaji remains a significant threat to the safety of the public, and that a Detention Order with no change to the terms was necessary and appropriate.
Ms. Shannon Curry supported the position of the hospital on behalf of the Attorney General.
Mr. Reynolds took no position in the absence of instructions from his client. He relied on instructions received from Mr. Gaji prior to last year’s hearing to consent to the proposed terms recommended by the hospital.
The parties maintained their respective positions in closing submissions.
Index Offences
- The multiple index offences occurred on two separate occasions: 1) June 29 to July 2, 2019; and 2) August 27, 2020. The circumstances of the index offences are outlined in detail in the Hospital Report. A summary of the first set of index offences in 2019 is as follows: Mr. Gaji threw a fire hose at a 6-year-old boy and then pushed him off his bike the next day. Mr. Gaji also threatened a 6-year-old-girl saying that the was going to kill her. Finally, Mr. Gaji swung a metal rod at a camp counsellor who was playing with young children. The victim was able to block the blow with his arm, but his glasses were knocked off and he sustained bruising and abrasions to his arm. Mr. Gaji chased the victim as he ran away.
The circumstances of the second set of index offences is extracted from last year’s reasons as follows:
"On Thursday August 27, 2020, the victim Social Worker, attended 23-6 Vendome Place on a scheduled visit with the accused. While at the address the victim was in conversation with the accused mother regarding the possibility of the accused providing blood work as he is currently prescribed Lithium. The accused having heard this conversation became upset as he has no interest in getting any blood drawn and confronted the victim Social Worker – eventually screaming "I am going to kill you".
The accused then entered the kitchen and collected a drawer. The accused then used the drawer to assault the victim Social Worker by slamming the drawer over her head at least 10-12 times. The accused targeted her head throughout the entire assault. The kitchen drawer eventually broke after the repeated strikes to her head. The accused collected a piece of the drawer and continued his assault again striking her repeatedly over her head. Continuing with the assault, the accused picked up a floor fan and again continued the assault by striking her over the head. The accused then collected a chair and again continued the assault by striking her over the head. She was in a fetal position on the floor when the accused began to strike her about the back and sides by kicking her. The accused screamed, "I am going to kill you". She was able to tell the accused she would leave, and she would not call the police, which allowed her to escape the home and the assaults from the accused. It was determined that the victim suffered a broken right wrist, a concussion and various cuts and abrasions. Police responded to the address and located the accused and he was placed under arrest.”
Background
The Hospital Report describes Mr. Gaji’s background in detail and need not be repeated here. In summary, Mr. Gaji is a 40-year-old single man born in Kenya. He immigrated to Canada with his mother and two siblings when he was 8 years old. Mr. Gaji struggled educationally and graduated from grade 8. He last attended school in grade 9. His employment history is unclear, but he may have worked as a car mechanic.
Mr. Gaji has the following diagnoses:
Schizoaffective Disorder, Bipolar Type;
Unspecified Other Substance-Related Disorder;
Intellectual Developmental Disorder, Moderate; and
Antisocial Personality Disorder.
Mr. Gaji has a lengthy adult criminal offence history commencing in October 2003, including several charges for uttering threats, assault, robbery, fail to comply with probation order, and mischief under $5000.
Mr. Gaji has an extensive psychiatric history. He began to experience psychotic symptoms at the age of 15. Mr. Gaji’s first psychiatric admission to hospital was in February 2007 at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in the context of increased auditory and visual hallucinations and paranoia. He had more than 20 admissions following this due to agitation, aggression, violence, medication non-compliance, property destruction, and substance use.
After his NCR finding, Mr. Gaji was admitted to the Forensic Assessment Unit at Waypoint on July 6, 2021. He has a history of assaulting co-patients and seclusion while in hospital. He now resides on the Awenda program at Waypoint. Pronounced symptoms of his mental illness persist despite treatment and intensive support. Behavioural responses remain erratic. His ability to concentrate is limited. He continues to require prompting to complete basic activities of daily living.
Mr. Gaji’s security level has remained at C2, which requires that he be accompanied off unit. He has not required seclusion this reporting period.
Mr. Gaji holds a Temporary Resident Permit, which expires annually each July. His mother, together with his unit social worker, coordinated renewal of his permit.
Mr. Gaji is on the wait list for neuropsychological testing.
Oral Evidence at the Hearing
Dr. Ismail provided oral evidence at the hearing as follows.
The risk assessment authored by him at pages 65 to 67 of the Hospital Report remains his opinion. He is recommending that Mr. Gaji remain at Waypoint because he continues to exhibit psychotic symptoms, is extremely isolative, and is difficult to assess because he walks away when symptomology is discussed. Most of the data that the treatment team is relying on is observational. Apart from experiencing negative symptoms and having poor engagement, Mr. Gaji can be irritable and hostile at times. He has periods of mania with racing thoughts. He has disturbed sleep, often remaining awake all night. He makes grandiose statements and exhibits hypersexual behaviour. The treatment team has observed Mr. Gaji responding to unseen stimuli. He talks about escaping the hospital. At times, he thinks people are on the roof waiting to harm him with tranquilizers. He cheeks medications.
Mr. Gaji has no insight into his illness and is incapable of making treatment decisions. His mother is his substitute decision-maker.
The treatment team requested that Mr. Gaji participate in a neuropsychological assessment. However, Mr. Gaji refused. The team will renew attempts for him to participate in neuropsychological testing.
The staff have tried to engage Mr. Gaji in off unit activities and forensic walks but he declines. He refuses to engage with the hospital’s therapist as well. Dr. Ismail stated that Mr. Gaji’s progress is at a standstill due to lack of engagement.
Mr. Gaji is currently treated with three antipsychotic medications and one mood stabilizer. He would most likely benefit from treatment with clozapine. However, he flatly refuses to permit the necessary clozapine bloodwork. It is not known if he would permit PRONTO finger prick bloodwork instead of drawing blood conventionally. Mr. Gaji’s illness is not yet considered to be treatment refractory.
Mr. Gaji has a brother and sister, both of whom suffer from schizophrenia. His mother lives in Toronto and has virtual and phone visits with Mr. Gaji. She is not permitting the treatment team to connect with Disability Services Ontario (“DSO”) because she is concerned that DSO funding will permit him to leave hospital and be left in her care.
Mr. Gaji is not overtly aggressive in the very structured hospital environment. However, it is not known how he would respond in a less secure setting. Mr. Gaji has no well-formed plan around leaving the hospital.
In response to questions of the panel, Dr. Ismail stated that a neuropsychological assessment would help to identify whether Mr. Gaji’s lack of engagement is due to negative symptoms of his mental illness or intellectual disability.
DSO funding would be relevant when Mr. Gaji is ready for discharge to community housing. It will not make a difference in his quality of life currently while at Waypoint.
There was a medication review in the past which indicated that Mr. Gaji has been trialled on most antipsychotic medications. Dr. Ismail noted that the PRONTO finger prick system would not obviate the need for traditional bloodwork when starting on clozapine.
Mr. Gaji has privileges that entitle him to two hours off unit, but he is not interested in exercising his privileges. Dr. Ismail stated, “we almost have to force him to go.”
No further evidence was called by the parties.
Analysis and Conclusions
Based on the Hospital Report and the evidence of Dr. Ismail, the panel concluded that Mr. Gaji continues to represent a significant threat to the safety of the public. Mr. Gaji has a long history of psychiatric illness that predates the index offence. The multiple index offences were serious and unprovoked.
Mr. Gaji has persistent symptoms of his treatment-resistant major mental illness. Over the review period, symptoms have included thought broadcasting, magical thinking, grandiose and paranoid delusions, behavioural instability, and affective lability. At times, he is observed responding to auditory hallucinations. Episodes of mania characterized by bizarre and disorganized behaviour have also been documented. He demonstrates cognitive impairments, including limited concentration, short-term memory impairments, and slowed thought processing.
Mr. Gaji’s insight into his mental disorder, associated risks, and need for treatment remain poor. He does not understand factors that increase his risk. He often challenges medication administration, at times feigning adherence by cheeking medication. He refuses to cooperate with blood monitoring, which precludes consideration of the use of clozapine, thus limiting risk mitigation strategies. His resistance to treatment contributes to the persistence of his active symptoms and undermines his ability to move forward in the forensic system.
The Board accepts and relies on Dr. Ismail’s Clinical and Composite Assessment of Risk at pages 65 through 67 of the Hospital Report, with his summary extracted as follows:
“Mr. Gaji continues to exhibit multiple dynamic risk factors, including active psychosis, mood instability, poor insight into illness and risk, resistance to treatment, behavioural dysregulation, impaired judgment, and significant functional deficits. These factors are ongoing and, at times, worsening, and they require the intensive supervision, structure, and multidisciplinary management available only within a high-secure forensic setting. Any reduction in security or supervision would substantially increase the risk of harm to others. It is therefore the opinion of the treating team that Mr. Gaji remains a significant risk to public safety and that the current disposition should remain unchanged.”
Absent the oversight of the ORB and the intensive structure and supervision at Waypoint under a Detention Disposition, Mr. Gaji’s risk of harm to others would substantially increase.
The panel finds that a continuation of the Detention Order is necessary and appropriate, and the least onerous and least restrictive Disposition for Mr. Gaji at this time.
DATED this 14th day of April 2026, at the City of Toronto, in the Region of Toronto.
Ms. C. Murray
Legal Member
__________________
Office of the Registrar
Ontario Review Board