Canadian far right scumbag Pat King, a leading figure of the “Freedom Convoy” movement whose five week shitshow paralyzed the nation’s capital of Ottawa when hundreds of 18-wheelers choked the streets in protest of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate, was found guilty Friday on five of nine charges against him for inciting the mess, and faces up to 10 years in the clink, the CBC reports.
The five charges King was nailed on include two counts of disobeying a court order and one each of mischief, counseling to commit mischief and counseling to obstruct a public or peace officer while he walked on three counts of intimidation and counseling to commit intimidation, and one of obstructing a public or peace officer. King’s defense had tried to sell the court on a very MAGA January 6th-ish “entrapment” line of bullshit, as the CBC writes his lawyer Natasha Calvinho “argued police and government ‘barricaded’ protesters in downtown Ottawa, preventing them from leaving the city. She also pointed to moments when King told supporters to remain peaceful and co-operate with authorities.” Hmmmm… That last bit sure sounds pretty goddamned familiar, right?
King’s fellow Clustertruck organizers, Tamara Lich and Chris Barber, are still facing trial as co-defendants. The CBC reported earlier this year that their case has been stalled repeatedly, though a verdict could come within the next six months. That King went down on Friday does not mean the other two will be convicted as the charges against them are very different in nature.