OTTAWA | One of the organizers of the “Freedom Convoy” in Coutts, Alberta, insisted on distancing himself from a far-right organization whose gunmen were arrested on the brink of a blockade in February.
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“We did not do it. They were people who were among us and who, according to the allegations, had opinions different from ours,” defended Marco Van Huigenbos on Tuesday before the Emergency Measures Inquiry Commission.
Mr. Van Huigenbos, a councilman in the small town of Fort Macleod south of Calgary, was one of the spokespersons for the Coutts protesters.
In this small Alberta border town, 12 people were arrested on February 13 after an arsenal of weapons was confiscated.
The next day, the federal government invoked the emergency law because it feared a threat to national security.
conspiracy to murder
Of those arrested, five had taken part in the occupation of Ottawa before joining the Coutts protesters, and four were charged with conspiring to murder RCMP officers.
Mr Van Huigenbos defended one of them: Chris Lyzak. He called him a “friendly giant” who took part with him in the blockade of the Alberta-United States border.
He also stated that he was not aware that guns were circulating among the protesters.
For his part, Lyzak admitted bringing Coutts a pistol and a long gun. He faces a life sentence if convicted of conspiring to murder RCMP officers.
The 48-year-old is linked to the founder of the far-right Diagolon militia, Jeremy MacKenzie.
The two men met last week in 2021, according to MacKenzie’s testimony before the commission.
Peaceful and family
Mr Van Huigenbos, who was himself charged with mischief in connection with his involvement in the blockade, said he had never heard of Diagolon and Jeremy MacKenzie before the discovery of the arms arsenal at Coutts.
Describing the Alberta blockade as a peaceful, family-friendly gathering, he said participants decided to break camp immediately after learning of the weapons confiscation in order to fully distance themselves.
“It was very clear to me […] that our message was lost,” he said, stressing that the weapons confiscated were legal.
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