OTTAWA, ONTARIO — Eleven people were arrested Monday morning at the Coutts border blockade near Montana after Canadian authorities said they found a cache of firearms with large quantities of ammunition.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said it seized 13 long guns, handguns, multiple sets of body armor, a machete, a large quantity of ammunition, and a high capacity of ammunition.
“The group was said to have a willingness to use force against the police if any attempts were made to disrupt the blockade,” a statement from the Alberta Royal Canadian Mounted Police said.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney, a member of the Conservative Party and head of the provincial government, described the incident as “a small cell of people who wanted to take this in a very dangerous and dark direction.”
TRUDEAU TO INVOKE EMERGENCIES ACT, GIVING GOVERNMENT ADDITIONAL POWER TO DEAL WITH TRUCKER PROTESTS
Kenney said he, along with other Albertans, “have been frustrated with the ongoing blockade, the interruption of other people’s lives, the violation of other people’s rights, the safety hazard that this represents and [was] very distressed to learn about this small group that apparently had violent intent.”
“This underscores the severity of what has been happening,” he said. “And to those who have been impatient about enforcement, I ask them to understand that this investigation has been ongoing over the past week, and the RCMP obviously did not want to escalate the situation that could provoke potential violence until they had a tactical plan in place.”
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News of the arrests came shortly after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his intent to invoke the Emergencies Act, which will give the government additional power to deal with the trucker protests across the country.
