Author of the article: Date of publication: March 28, 2022 • 30 minutes ago • 2 minutes reading • 321 comments OTAWA – March 28, 2022 – Randy Hillier of the Frontenac MPP arrives at the Ottawa Police Headquarters to be handed over to the Ottawa Police on Monday morning. Photo by TONY CALDWELL, Postmedia
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OTTAWA – Randy Hillier, an independent member of the Ontario Legislature, has been released on several terms after being handed over to Ottawa police today.
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He faces nine charges related to his involvement in the protest that took over the core of the national capital last month. The Crown agreed to release the Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston member after appearing in court by telephone this afternoon. The Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston member arrived at the police headquarters early in the morning and told reporters that he had been informed by police on Sunday that charges had been brought and understood that they were related to the occupation of downtown Ottawa. “Different and dissenting views are now obviously criminal, so this is a worrying trend,” he said. Nine charges have been filed against the 64-year-old, according to Ontario Provincial Police. They include two categories for obstructing or resisting a public official, one for attacking a peace or public official and three categories for advising a non-aligned official, two of which are considered malicious.
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A police statement said the investigation began in February following “multiple complaints” received about a person posting on social media and other activities. Hillier said he had “thousands of interactions” with people and had no idea what led to the accusation of assaulting a civilian or civil servant. “I never greeted people only with love and affection, a hug and a handshake, so unless handshakes and warm hugs are now considered an attack, I have no idea,” he said. Hillier resigned from the Ontario Conservatives in 2019. He announced earlier this month that he would not run for re-election in June. During the pandemic, Hillier frequently posted misinformation about COVID-19 and conspiracy theories and was accused of allegedly violating public health rules. He also called Federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra a terrorist and described public health measures as “fascism”.
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The Ontario legislature initially approved a unanimous motion condemning Hillier’s “worthy of respectable conduct” after publishing the names and photographs of people who had died to indicate without evidence that they had died of COVID-19 vaccination. He later apologized, but the legislature condemned him again and authorized the President not to recognize Hillier for statements that Prime Minister Paul Calandra called racist and discriminatory against Alghabra. Hillier denied that Alghabra’s posts were racist because he did not mention Alghabra’s religion or nationality, and also called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, his cabinet, and Ford and his cabinet terrorists. This Canadian Press report was first published on March 28, 2022.
