'A reality that I face': Two Coutts protesters face jail for part in 2022 blockade

Marco Van Huigenbos, centre, waits in line as he arrives at court for a sentencing hearing in Lethbridge, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. Two men who became the faces of a COVID-19 protest blockade at a key border crossing between Alberta and the United States nearly three years ago will learn their fates Friday. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Two men who became the faces of a COVID-19 protest blockade at a key border crossing between Alberta and the United States nearly three years ago will learn their fates Friday.

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Gerhard (George) Janzen and Marco Van Huigenbos, along with a third man, Alex Van Herk, were found guilty last year of mischief over $5,000 for their actions at the protest over COVID-19 measures and vaccine mandates.

The sentencing hearing went ahead for Van Huigenbos and Janzen Thursday. Lawyer Michael Johnston told court that Van Herk had fired him. He requested a 30-day delay.

The Crown has recommended a nine-month sentence for Van Huigenbos and six months for Janzen because he played a lesser leadership role in the blockade.

Janzen addressed the court at the end of the day, offering an apology for the residents of Milk River and Coutts and for the stress the blockade caused. He said the intention was to cause change through peaceful means and not by breaking laws.

"The decision to participate in the blockade was driven by strong convictions. However, I regret that our methods obstructed the lives of our community members and brought unwelcome stress and chaos," Janzen said, reading from a prepared statement.

"I'm committed to learning from this experience and seeking more constructive and law-abiding ways to express my views in the future."

Van Huigenbos decided not to address the court but he did speak with The Canadian Press outside court at the end of the day.

"This is not something I have ever done so there's a lot of feelings, a lot of emotions," he said.

Van Huigenbos said it will be a relief to see the case come to a close.

"I won't miss coming back here," he said, and understands he may end up behind bars.

"It's a reality that I face but regardless of that reality we're here, we showed up, we fought the fight that we felt was there from the beginning ... ramifications aside and now it's in the hands of God, ultimately."

Johnston told Justice Keith Yamauchi that Van Huigenbos deserved a stiffer sentence.

“These two men are not at the same level,” Johnston said.

"It is the Crown's view that, realistically, the most appropriate sentence for these gentlemen is to sentence them to a term of jail — real jail."

Johnston said the fact it was a political protest doesn't lessen its severity.

"Politically motivated crime always is a calculated decision … we don't change our governments in this country through criminal acts," Johnston said.

"This was the hostage taking of a highway with the goal of creating political change."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 10, 2025.