More officers have been called in to help with an illegal blockade at the Coutts border crossing according to RCMP as the protest enters its fifth day.
Mounties were prepared to make arrests Tuesday at the border crossing but backed off when there were safety concerns. Cpl. Curtis Peters said some vehicles left peacefully but others — including tractors — sped through police roadblocks to join the blockade.
RCMP said there also was a head-on crash and a person involved then assaulted another person. Peters added some protesters have harassed the local mayor and his wife by showing up at their home and taking photos through their windows.
He says the behaviour is not very Canadian. “The fight is not with the mayor and his wife,” Peters told reporters Tuesday night in Coutts. “They should not be subjected to that kind of harassment in their own home.” Some of those involved in the blockade are protesting mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for cross-border truck drivers as well as broader public health measures.