Sunday, October 13, 2013

"Freeman" Darren Clifford Arrested

Roughly around the time the group in Grande Prairie were evicted, it seems that Darren Clifford (brother of Dean Clifford, once an associate of Bill Noble), was arrested on outstanding warrants:

Freeman-on-the-land charged with assaulting a cop, others occupying trappers' cabins

6:49 pm, October 7th, 2013

CALGARY -- Just weeks after a self-proclaimed Freeman-on-the-Land was ousted from a home he was squatting in, other members of the group are allegedly causing trouble.

Darren Clifford, 40, is scheduled to appear in court for a bail hearing Tuesday on charges including assaulting a police officer, which stems from an alleged altercation with Const. Tom Christie last year.

There was a warrant for Clifford's arrest when Christie spotted him driving on June 17, 2012, and pulled him over.

It's alleged Clifford resisted arrest and struck Christie in the process, resulting in minor bruising.

Christie said he used a Taser on Clifford, who then "was more compliant." Clifford was later released on bail.

Clifford "has identified himself to us as a Freeman," Christie said, adding Clifford has said he will bill police "exorbitant rates" for their dealings with him.

Meanwhile, police continue to investigate claims that Freemen have now forcibly taken over several trappers' cabins south of Grande Prairie, Alta.

A man who claimed to belong to the group was arrested last month in Calgary after declaring a rental property he was squatting on an embassy. The landlady battled to oust Mario Antonacci from her property for more than a year after he paid half the agreed rent and refused to leave.

Antonacci, 42, is being returned to Montreal to face aggravated assault charges stemming from an alleged attack against a former landlord in 2007.

Members of the so-called Freeman-on-the-Land movement refuse to heed rules on the basis that statute laws are voluntary, and anyone declaring themselves a sovereign citizen can avoid things like taxes, drivers licences or insurance.

--with files from Dave Lazzarino

We have written fairly extensively about Dean Clifford including his participation on the American-based hate forum Stormfront; many of the posts were extreme in their racism, antisemitism, and violence even for Stormfront. Seems his brother has the same views, at least in part.

1 comment:

ExProudCanadian said...

Sure statutory laws are voluntary. You agree to follow them implicitly (if not actually explicitly) by choosing to continue to live where they exist. You don't have to sign any contracts. If you don't like it, you are quite free to leave the country, we won't stop you. If they want to be a sovereign state, drop them in a dinghy on the ocean and let them find an unclaimed island for themselves! It *is* odd how they then try to use the laws they say don't apply or exist to defend themselves when something happens. Hey, there are no laws, remember?