Coutts protest leaders to go on trial in 2024

A three-week trial has been set for the three Alberta men accused of organizing the border blockade and protests last year at Coutts, Alta.

Marco Van Huigenbos, 32, a Fort Macleodtown councillor, faces a charge of mischief over $5,000, as do Alex Van Herk, 53, andGeorge Janzen, 43.

Lawyers for the men appeared in Lethbridge court on Monday and booked a jury trial for April 2, 2024.

In March, Van Huigenbos was reprimanded for what Fort Macleod Mayor Brent Feyter described as "unacceptable behaviour."

In a letterposted to the town's website, Feyter expressed "grave concerns" about Van Huigenbos's role as a blockade organizer.

• Fort Macleod councillor, 2 other 'key participants' charged in Coutts border blockades

The on-again, off-again blockade at the busy Coutts crossing started on Jan.29 and endedFeb.15 after police raids resulted in more than a dozen arrests and the seizure of a cache of weapons, ammunition and body armour.

When interviewed the day after the raids, Van Huigenbostold CBC News the protest was "infiltrated by an extreme element" and said the remaining protesters had decided to "peacefully leave Coutts and return to [their] families."

In his testimony at theEmergencies Act inquiry in November, Van Huigenbos told thecommission he felt the discovery of weapons tainted the movement.

"For me, it became very clear that every objective we were looking to achieve was no longer possible and our message had been lost," he said.

Charges dropped against 3 men

Initially, RCMP laid charges against 14 people. Four men Chris Carbert, Chris Lysak, Anthony Olienick and Jerry Morin are facing the most serious offences, conspiracyto murder RCMP officers.

Since then, prosecutors have dropped the charges againstLuke Berk, 63, Johnson Law, 40,andJanx Zaremba, 19,who werefacing mischief and weapons offences.

• Bosses of Alberta men accused in plot to murder Mounties still under investigation, court docs suggest

The four men accused of plotting to murder police officers will go on trial in June.

Unsealed court documentsshow RCMP ran an undercover operation and used an "imminent harm" wiretap to justify the execution of search warrants and the laying of charges.

RCMP believed the men accused of conspiring to murder police officers were stockpiling weapons to arm themselves and others in preparation for a standoff with police.