GUNMAN ISSUED TRUDEAU THREAT: POLICE
Alleged intruder had four loaded weapons
Court documents outlining allegations against Corey Barclay Hurren, arrested after a truck crashed through the gates of Rideau Hall, suggest the attack may well have been an assassination attempt, featuring a direct threat against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and four loaded guns — a handgun, a semi-automatic rifle and two shotguns.
Two of the guns were either restricted or prohibited, including a loaded Norinco M14 rifle, which is a prohibited firearm under the May 1 Liberal government ban on “assault-style firearms.”
Hurren, 46, who was an active member of the Canadian Armed Forces, was arrested Thursday after breaching the grounds of the residence where Trudeau and his family live, and charged Friday with 22 criminal offences.
The charge details were released Monday.
Hurren “did knowingly utter a threat to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau or convey a threat to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau or cause Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to receive a threat to cause death or bodily harm to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau,” the charge sheet says.
The other 21 charges all involve his firearms and ammunition.
The list of charges filed in court itemize the arsenal Hurren allegedly had with him after arriving in Ottawa from his home in northern Manitoba.
Court documents allege he had:
A loaded “Hi-standard revolver,” which is a restricted firearm for which he had no licence to possess. There are no details given.
And he brushed off China’s Canadian travel warning.
“I’m a great reader of George Orwell, and I think to really appreciate the world today you have to read ‘Nineteen Eighty-four.’ Some strange things are going on,” Rae said.
“For some country to suggest that this is a bad time to come to Canada is, frankly, bizarre. They have their own reasons for saying it; I don’t think we should take it entirely seriously. Sometimes humour is a good relief when you’re facing these moments.”
Canada has had a relationship with Hong Kong for centuries, he said, including defending it from Japanese attack in the Second World War.
“We have a stake here and we have interests. We have many Canadians of Hong Kong origin. So it’s not, we’re not meddling in anybody else’s business. We’re talking about our business, our relationships, which are important to us, and we shouldn’t shy away from expressing those thoughts,” Rae said.
Meanwhile, a Beijing law professor who has been an outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist Party and
President Xi Jinping was arrested on Monday.
Xu Zhangrun, 57, a professor at the prestigious Tsinghua University, came to prominence in 2018 for denouncing the removal of the two-term limit, which allows Xi to remain in office beyond his current second term.
According to a text message circulated among Xu’s friends and seen by Reuters, he was taken from his house in suburban Beijing on Monday morning by more than 20 policemen, who also searched his house and confiscated his computer.
Zhao, the foreign ministry spokesman, said he had no information about the arrest when asked Monday.
One of Xu’s friends, who did not want to be named, said he had not been able to contact Xu since hearing news of his detainment.
The friend said that at a gathering in January, Xu said he was mentally prepared for whatever punishment may await him.
He Weifang, a prominent Peking University law professor who has long known Xu, said that Xu had been deeply worried and anxious about China’s direction in recent years.
“He felt that the country was going backwards and that as a public intellectual, he has the duty to speak up,” He said.
FOR SOME COUNTRY TO SUGGEST THAT THIS IS A BAD TIME TO COME TO CANADA IS, FRANKLY,
BIZARRE.