The public inquiry into the federal government’s use of the Emergency Act during the “Freedom Convoy” protests says it expects to call “Diagolon” founder Jeremy MacKenzie as a witness. Attorneys for the Public Order Emergency Committee expect to call the founder of the online group, which includes members who supported the convoy, to testify Friday via video conference. MacKenzie’s attorney filed a motion with the commission asking him to testify in the absence of the public and parties or under a publication ban. MacKenzie is currently in a Saskatchewan jail and was denied release earlier this month after being arrested in Nova Scotia on a Canada-wide warrant. He was charged with assault, pointing a firearm, disorderly conduct and careless use of a restricted weapon after police received a report of an alleged assault near Viscount, Sask., in November 2021. McKenzie was also charged in Nova Scotia with 13 firearms offenses in January and harassment and intimidation in March after an anti-mask protest outside the home of Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre also asked the RCMP to investigate MacKenzie after he spoke about sexually assaulting Poilievre’s wife, Anaida, during a live stream in September. This report by The Canadian Press was first published on October 31, 2022.
