Kevin J. Johnston released on $2,500 surety, will reside with friend in Edmonton
Former Calgary mayoral candidate Kevin J. Johnston has been released from custody and will have to live on house arrest with a friend in Edmonton who posted a $2,500 surety.
Johnston is also forbidden from using any electronic device that can access the internet.
He was arrested by U.S. authorities on Jan. 4 while trying to walk over the border illegally from Saskatchewan to Montana.
He was held in Plentywood, Mon. before being returned to Canada.
Warrants had been issued for Johnston for being unlawfully at large after he failed to appear at the Calgary Remand Centre for the final weekend of his sentence.
Johnston, who was unsuccessful in his attempt to become Calgary's mayor in 2021, received an intermittent 40-day sentence in September 2021 after being convicted of breaching court orders related to non-compliance with Alberta's public health measures. He was also ordered to pay Alberta Health Services $20,000.
The following month, he received a separate 18-month jail sentence in Ontario after being found guilty of six counts of contempt of court over defamatory comments regarding the CEO of Paramount Fine Foods. Johnston had referred to Mohamad Fakih as both a "terrorist" and a "baby killer."
The Ontario sentence was to begin following the completion of his time served on weekends in Alberta that began in September 2021 and was to end Jan. 2.
Johnston is also scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 19 in Dawson Creek, B.C. on an assault charge in connection with his actions at a local grocery store. Johnston was charged after he attempted to make a purchase without a face covering and then allegedly confronted the store's manager in the parking lot, which was captured on video.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Luxury cruise line selling world cruise suite for US$1.7 million
Luxury operator Regent Seven Seas Cruises is raising their price tag to eye-watering levels, with a suite on an upcoming 140-day world voyage costing US$1.7 million.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
A Filipino villager is nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager has been nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he said he would devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
Ontario homeowner on the hook for $27,000 when contractor severed power line
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
'Oppenheimer' finally premieres in Japan to mixed reactions and high emotions
'Oppenheimer' finally premiered Friday in the nation where two cities were obliterated 79 years ago by the nuclear weapons invented by the American scientist who was the subject of the Oscar-winning film. Japanese filmgoers' reactions understandably were mixed and highly emotional.