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Online threats lead to standoff with RCMP in Dinsmore
A 35-year-old man is undergoing a mental health assessment after a standoff with the RCMP in Dinsmore, Saskatchewan.
A man in Dinsmore who sparked a lengthy standoff with the Mounties after allegedly making threats and barricading himself inside a home with weapons had posted hours of video content online about conspiracy theories leading up to his arrest.
According to RCMP spokesman Rob King, the 35-year-old man was taken into custody early Thursday morning after what became an hours-long standoff. Police said the incident began around 4:15 p.m. Wednesday after officers responded to the home, about three hours northwest of Regina, due to reports that a man was making threats online.
King would not provide any further details on the nature of the threats.
At 9:22 p.m. Wednesday, police issued a release alerting the public of an increased police presence in the village. The RCMP’s Emergency Response Team (ERT) also responded to the scene. Police asked that residents avoid the scene, but said there was no threat to the surrounding area.
Police said the man was taken into custody around midnight, and that he had barricaded himself, with weapons, inside the home. King said police had to enter the home to arrest the man, as he would not come out on his own.
The man was then taken to hospital for treatment and a mental health assessment.
Police have not released his name. However, the Leader-Post has learned the man is Thomas Christian Zaugg, who is originally from Toronto. A notorious figure in Toronto, Zaugg was arrested and charged in 2019 with spray painting the cenotaph outside Old City Hall. He was released on bail and was ordered to undergo counselling. Zaugg later claimed he vandalized the cenotaph in response to Don Cherry being fired from CBC.
In a video that was live streamed on Wednesday, Zaugg can be seen inside a dark room. He references the fact that police are outside his home, and that he believes they are there to kill him.
“They’re intending on murdering me,” said Zaugg in the video.
Police can be heard on a loudspeaker attempting to speak with Zaugg. At one point a buzzing sound is heard, and Zaugg remarks that police are using a drone outside.
Zaugg had posted several hours worth of live-streamed videos in the past three days. Much of the videos involve him alone in front of a webcam speaking incoherently about a multitude of topics, such as the Canadian constitution and the military.
In another video taken on Thursday before his arrest, Zaugg exits his home and yells at two RCMP members at the end of a driveway.
“You are blindly following orders like Nazis, communists. All the things that you claim to stand against. You are a disgrace,” said Zaugg, who then asks police if they have ever heard of QAnon, in reference to the global conspiracy movement.
In other videos, Zaugg can be seen carrying what appears to be a rifle and a crossbow. He speaks of not going down without a fight, before trailing off.
On a Twitter account bearing Zaugg’s name, the last post at 9:28 p.m. Wednesday addresses the police presence outside his home. He also tagged U.S. President Donald Trump and wrote “SIR. I AM Q>I REQUIRE YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION.”
In a tweet from Dec. 14, 2020, Zaugg wrote that he would favour the U.S. sending its army into Canada to liberate it from its “traitorous communist government.”
Kevin Metcalf is a Toronto resident who runs a Facebook page that monitors far-right movements in the city. Metcalf said Zaugg had been known for walking around Kensington Market dressed as a wizard while making anti-Semitic remarks. Metcalf said Zaugg has also been associated with an online organization called The Plaid Army.
“It’s like an ecosystem of far-right video bloggers who share each other’s content and support each other’s work. I understand there’s been some falling out between Thomas Zaugg and The Plaid Army in the last few days that may have precipitated this incident. That’s sort of what I’ve been researching,” said Metcalf.
As of Thursday afternoon, Zaugg was not yet facing any charges in connection with the incident, which is still under investigation by the RCMP.
Harvey Lonsberry, the mayor of Dinsmore, did not wish to identify the man arrested as Zaugg, but said the individual had been living there for only a few weeks. He described the village, which has a population of 290, as typically a very “sleepy community.”
“There was a large police presence so everybody was very curious about it,” said Lonsberry.
