Chief Sloly begged OPP to help kill off the ‘head of the hydra,’ protest inquiry hears

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Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly pleaded with the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) to send him as many resources during the Freedom Convoy in order to kill off “the head of the hydra” and prevent other convoys from spreading elsewhere, according to a new testimony heard on Thursday.

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OPP Supt. Craig Abrams, who was responsible for the operations in the East Region of Ontario during the events last winter, was called in front of the inquiry to recall his version of the events which led to the invocation of the Emergencies Act by the federal government on Feb. 14.

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Sloly referenced the water monster in Greek mythology during a meeting in the boardroom of the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) on Feb. 9, when explaining to Abrams why resources should be diverted to Ottawa instead of the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ont., at that moment.

Abrams said he could promise up to 400 OPP members but told him it would take a few days, maybe even a week, to get those resources. “That really seemed to trigger chief Sloly,” he said.

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Galvanized by their occupation in the nation’s capital, convoy protesters had blockaded other parts of the country, including a critical border crossing for Canada’s economy, and notes presented to the commission showed that Windsor’s blockade was deemed “easier” to resolve.

Those notes, dated Feb. 10, showed that Abrams considered Ottawa’s blockade was “just trucks on side streets” and “was not affecting livelihoods”. They also mentioned that OPS did not like the Police Liaison Teams (PLT) and the word “nightmare” appeared next to this.

During his testimony, Abrams said he did not recall OPP being asked to prioritize the blockade in Windsor over Ottawa.

Abrams did, however, speak at length of PLT’s difficulties in dealing with OPS and confirmed deputy Ottawa Police Service chief Patricia Ferguson’s previous testimony on how OPS undermined an operation made at Coventry Road, in the outskirts of downtown Ottawa.

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PLT had been trying to negotiate with the demonstrators the removal of stockpiles of fuel in the encampment, but Abrams said OPS saw this as an enforcement opportunity and proceeded to arrests.

An extensive email sent from Abrams to OPP chiefs after a meeting on Feb. 6 with OPS command said the PLT wanted to “quit” as a result of those events. He said the Coventry Road events had made their job “untenable” and the “trust was now broken” with sources.

The events highlighted a power struggle between police forces.

Sloly, the email showed, was expecting all policing partners to engage in arrests for fuel possession, but Abrams firmly refused and advised his teams to not engage in such arrests unless authorized by senior OPP command.

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In another email to OPP Deputy Commissioner Chris Harkins sent on Feb. 7, Abrams further revealed to the inquiry that Sloly was deliberately asking for two times the amount of policing resources that his teams on the ground needed and made sure OPP was aware of it.

“Chief Sloly told them (his team) that if they need 100 (people) he will ask for 200, if they need 200 he will ask for 400. He seemed very comfortable asking for twice what he really needed,” wrote Abrams. “Was a very strange call to be part of,” he added.

Sloly ended up asking for 1,800 cops and civilians to handle the protests in Ottawa.

Abrams’ cross examination will happen on Friday.