A Montreal man faces charges for an online post targeting the prime minister

MONTREAL – A Montreal man appeared in court Wednesday after threatening to kill Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in an online post.

RCMP said 30-year-old Paul Clarisso made repeated threats following an investigation by the Integrated National Security Task Force.

Crown prosecutor François Giasson said Clarisse's case was adjourned until March 26.

An RCMP unit in Quebec launched an investigation after the alleged comments were reported, and charges were laid on January 31. Police said the post was made on Platform X, the former Twitter account of the accused, but did not specify what was said.

According to Crown's charges, the alleged threat was made against Trudeau on or about May 19, 2023.

Coincidentally, also in May 2023, Trudeau was asked in the House of Commons about the rise in threats against politicians and whether MPs and cabinet ministers should be better protected.

“Over the past few years, we've seen an increase in polarization, toxicity and hateful (and) discourse in Canada, particularly directed at parliamentarians,” Trudeau said.

“We must do whatever it takes to keep those who serve democracy safe.”

A spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office said Wednesday that it does not comment on security concerns about the prime minister and referred all questions to the police.

In a statement, the RCMP said they take any threat to the safety of a person seriously, and anyone who engages in such activity can be prosecuted and face significant penalties.

“We've seen more of these incidents since the COVID pandemic, so we've adapted our resources to effectively monitor the Internet,” said RCMP Sgt. Charles Poirier said in an email. “So we're in a better position to prevent real threats.”

Last month, a Quebec man pleaded guilty to threatening Trudeau and Quebec Premier Francois Legault in a series of online videos. Germain Lemay, 30, pleaded guilty to five of the seven charges against him, including threatening two politicians between July and September 2023.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on February 7, 2024.

Siddhartha Banerjee, The Canadian Press