Kamloops MP's office vandalized on New Year's Day following emailed threats
Cathy McLeod says she was called a 'Nazi-like collaborator' because she supports coronavirus vaccines
Conservative MP Cathy McLeod says her office in downtown Kamloops, B.C., was broken into on New Year's Day amid escalating tension in the community around COVID-19 restrictions and vaccinations.
In a tweet Wednesday evening, the Opposition critic for Crown-Indigenous affairs says her Kamloops-Thompson-Cariboo federal constituency office was "rifled through" after she received emails calling her a "Nazi-like collaborator" because of her pro-vaccination stance.
McLeod says according to her locksmith, the office door was forced open with a crowbar and her desk was rummaged through. She stresses no personal information from constituents in her southern Interior riding was taken.
"We don't know what the motivation is," McLeod told Shelley Joyce, host of CBC's Daybreak Kamloops. "But it certainly feels very personal in terms of how they did go through the office."
In the last few days my constituency office has been broken into and rifled through. It has been suggested I am a nazi like collaborator because I believe COVID is serious and support vaccines.... Not a US scale polarization but we do have issues <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/cdnpoli?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#cdnpoli</a>
—@Cathy_McLeod
Kamloops RCMP said in a statement to CBC News it received a report of mischief and damage to McLeod's office around 6 a.m. on Jan. 1, but no suspect has been identified.
McLeod says she won't hesitate to get vaccinated for COVID-19 and she believes her positive view about vaccinations triggered the abusive emails she received over the holidays.
"I understand how people are angry at politicians right now in terms of some [who have travelled internationally]. I know that so many businesses are devastated. Many people are struggling with this COVID and the isolation and the restrictions that have been put in place," she said.
"I've noticed for the first time in my 12 years as an MP how many people are angry … but the tone of the correspondence into my office is very concerning for sure."
McLeod also says in her tweet Canada is experiencing polarization, although not on the same scale as south of the border, epitomized by supporters of outgoing President Donald Trump storming the U.S. Capitol building on Wednesday.
"I felt sick to see what was happening [in the U.S. Capitol]," she said. "But I think what's important is in the end, democracy did win out."
"I reflect back on what has been a peaceful transition of power in both the U.S. and Canada for many years … that is what democracy is all about."
Tap the link below to listen to Cathy McLeod's interview on Daybreak Kamloops:
With files from Daybreak Kamloops