Ottawa police say nearly 400 charges laid in operation to clear convoy blockade
Global News
Ottawa Police, working in tandem with forces from across the country, said they'd arrested 191 people and laid 391 charges related to the demonstrations
Silence and calm reigned on the streets of Ottawa for the first time in more than three weeks on Sunday as police continued their efforts to put a final end to anti-government demonstrations that immobilized the national capital.
Roadways once choked with trucks and protesters opposed to COVID-19 public health measures and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government were largely clear, though debris and other signs of the blockade dubbed an illegal occupation by its critics were still in evidence.
Ottawa Police, working in tandem with forces from across the country, said they’d arrested 191 people and laid 391 charges related to the demonstrations, though Ottawa Interim Police Chief Steve Bell said the mammoth law enforcement operation was far from over.
“There is another phase that will identify how we maintain the streets, how we eventually demobilize, once we’ve identified that there is no threat of further protests coming to our city,” Bell said at a news conference. “We aren’t there yet.”
Bell said charges laid to date include obstructing police, disobeying a court order, assault, mischief, possessing a weapon and assaulting a police officer.
Law enforcement is “with every hour” getting closer to delivering on its promise to clear streets and give them back to residents, he added.
Chris Harkins, deputy commissioner with the Ontario Provincial Police, said commercial and private vehicle driver’s licenses have been suspended, while 76 vehicles have been seized and towed in Ottawa.
But the massive enforcement blitz also drew attention from Ontario’s police watchdog on Sunday. The Special Investigations Unit announced it was probing two police-involved incidents related to the weekend effort to clear protesters, including one where a woman was injured when mounted police from Toronto charged at the crowd.
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