RCMP say that local Indigenous land defenders are not responsible for an attack on a Coastal GasLink worksite from last year.
Last February, police were called out to the site along the Marten Forest Service Road, near Houston, for reports of the attack.
Police arrived to find the roads blocked with flaming debris, downed trees, and more, preventing them from apprehending the fleeing suspects.
Since then, police have released videos of the incident and offered a $100,000 reward for information, but revealed few additional details.
That is until an interview from last week between the CBC’s Rob Brown and Chief Superintendent John Brewer.
Brewer says that a group of anarchists had infiltrated local blockades established by land defenders, before eventually perpetrating the attack.
During their escape, Brewer says the suspects used traps and snowmobiles to flee to a staging area on the highway, where they switched to trucks.
He says that police have identified half a dozen suspects, who hail from across the country, and are actively tracking their movements.
Arrests could be just weeks away, but Brewer remained tight-lipped on any further details.
According to reports, a group of masked individuals had swarmed a CGL truck, firing flares to intimidate workers into fleeing.
They then gained access to the vehicle, before pouring an unknown liquid over it and stealing a chainsaw from the bed.
Police ended up arresting five land defenders at a camp along the road while executing a pair of search warrants in relation to the incident.
Each were arrested for obstruction, and not in relation to the initial crime, and the camp’s connection to the incident remains unclear.
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