Police believed guns were brought to the Coutts border blockade for the specific purpose of shooting officers, court documents released Wednesday show.
In informations to obtain (ITOs) search warrants on various properties associated with the protest, Const. Trevor Checkley detailed the concerns Mounties had following an undercover investigation into the blockade.
The ITOs, sworn by Checkley in February, specifically named three of four suspects charged with conspiracy to murder RCMP officers — Anthony Olienick, Chris Carbert and Jerry Morin — as being of concern to police.
“I have reasonable grounds to believe that Olienick, Carbert and Morin were part of a group that participated in the Coutts blockade and brought firearms into the Coutts blockade area with the intention of using those firearms against police,” Checkley wrote.
And Checkley, in the applications that supported search warrants issued by provincial court Judge Kristin Ailsby, said police suspected there were other unknown individuals involved in what was believed to be a highly organized group.
In the heavily redacted ITOs released by Ailsby at the request of lawyer Tess Layton, who represented a media consortium that included Postmedia, Checkley said Olienick indicated protesters were heavily armed.
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“Olienick told (undercover officers) they had hundreds of guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition,” he said in seeking a search warrant at the accused’s home in the Municipal District of Willow Creek.
“When police executed a search warrant at (1st Avenue N. in Coutts, where it was believed many protesters were staying), police located only 15 firearms.”
The officer indicated he suspected there were other members of the organized group that had not attended the protest, while some equipment had yet to arrive when police made their arrests in mid-February.
“I believe Olienick had equipment stored outside of Coutts, there were members of the group that were not in Coutts and members of the group that transported some of the equipment into Coutts for Olienick,” he said.
“I believe equipment intended for Coutts did not arrive.”
The blockade, which halted traffic through the busy Alberta-Montana border crossing in a protest of COVID-19 health measures, lasted 18 days after beginning in late January.
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Checkley said police believed the border blockade was planned in advance.
“I do not believe that Olienick met his associates for the first time while in Coutts,” he said.
“Investigators, including myself, believe that some of this planning occurred prior to Olienick, Morin and Carbert attending Coutts. Furthermore, investigators believe that the firearms were brought into Coutts from somewhere outside Coutts.
“Investigators believe they have yet to seize all firearms that were available to Olienick and the rest of the group while in Coutts.”
In seeking the search warrant for Olienick’s property on Feb. 19 and 20, Checkley indicated there was some urgency.
“Olienick possessed firearms and was part of a group that spoke about using firearms against police. Police have not yet identified all members of the group and I believe there were members of the group that were not present in Coutts. I therefore believe it is in the best interests of police and public safety to execute this warrant as soon as practicable,” he wrote.
“Based on the totality of the circumstances, I have reasonable ground to believe that Olienick, Carbert and Morin were part of a sub-group with loose ties to (information redacted),” Checkley wrote.
“I believe the sub-group was arming themselves for a standoff against police.”
Police have not indicated any further arrests subsequent to those made at the time of the initial searches on Feb. 14, which resulted in Carbert, Olienick, Morin and Christopher Lysak being charged with conspiracy to commit murder.
Nine others were initially charged with mischief to property and possession of dangerous weapons, although charges against two, Johnson Chichow Law and Luke Berk, have been dropped.
A trial on the conspiracy charge is set for next June.
Twitter: @KMartinCourts
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