4 charged after latest gathering at 'defiant' Aylmer, Ont., church

Four people in Aylmer have been charged, with more to come, after the latest gathering at the Church of God at Aylmer, a house of worship that's become known for its pervasive defiance of Ontario emergency health orders during the pandemic.

Officers with the Aylmer Police Service visited the church on Tuesday night after a tip from the public about a gatheringinside the church.

Police allege 18 people who weren't wearing masks or physically distancingwere taking part in an organized event.

Aylmerpolice Chief Zvonko Horvat told CBC News on Wednesday that thefour were charged for failing to comply with theprovince's emergency health orders.

"We're also looking at identifying others and there will likely be more charges laid as a result of yesterday's incident," he said.

Since the pandemic began early in 2020, the church has repeatedly been in the media spotlight for its rebellious stance against provincial pandemic orders.

Lawyer for church weighs in

Pastor Henry Hildebrandt has made headlinesfor his stance on the province's strict rules against communal gatherings.

Dozens of parishioners and church leaders were fined after the church welcomed worshipers into its sanctuary, allowing them to gather on two separate occasions in January tosing together without masks and without observing thetwo-metre distance recommended by health authorities to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

The church was served with a restraining order from the Ministry of the Attorney General in February, ordering it to abide by the Reopening Ontario Act.

Lisa Bildy, the lawyer representing the Church of God at Aylmer, told CBC News in an email that she has yet to learn the particulars of the latest charges.

However, she said she is challenging theearlier charges against church leaders and parishioners on constitutional grounds, with a hearing set for July.

Bildyalso said in her email that the province could file a motion for the church to be found in contempt of court, if it can prove the church leaders and parishioners violated the restraining order imposed on them in February.

Horvat said Wednesday his officers have been trying to take a measured approach in dealing with the church's defiance, but it doesn't seem to be working.

"The fact of the matter is we've dealt with that particular group and they seem to be defiant in obeying emergency measures," he said. "They're just not getting the message.

"You think that perhaps a warning would suffice and they would comply, but they don't so the officers are put in the position where they don't have any other choice but to charge," saidHorvat.

"We can't be taking these things lightly."