Regina police issue more tickets to anti-mask protesters, warn against further rally attendance
Another anti-mask rally is expected in Regina on Saturday and police say they'll be in attendance
Regina police say they have issued more tickets to people who violated provincial public health orders at an anti-mask rally on April 24.
Eleven people who were at a rally in Victoria Park that day have already been served. The demonstration hosted more than 100 people gathered to protest COVID-19 restrictions, in violation of the province's limits on mass gatherings.
The current limit on outdoor public gatherings is 10 people.
Police say they have issued even more tickets that have yet to be served, some to people in other towns and cities.
The Regina Police Service is also trying to identify unmasked protesters who went into a shopping mall on April 24.
They are issuing a warning for people who plan to attend another rally in the city scheduled for Saturday. Police say that officers, both in uniform and in plain clothes, will be present to gather information and maintain the peace.
Police ask that people refrain from escalating tensions or provoking others into property crimes or physical conflict.
This comes in the wake of two assault charges laid against a man who allegedly struck two protesters on April 24 in an apparent dispute over protest signs.
Jeffery Cameron Meldrum, 33, faces assault charges but says he feels he and his partner were the ones wronged in the situation.
Police say after 5:30 p.m. CST on April 24, Meldrum was driving eastbound down Victoria Avenue across from Victoria Park when he stopped his vehicle.
A passenger in the vehicle, who Meldrum says is his girlfriend, got out and tried to remove signs placed on the median by nearby protesters, according to police. Two demonstrators tied to prevent the signs from being taken.
Meldrum allegedly then got out of the vehicle and struck the two protesters. Police said two men, a 62-year-old and a 26-year-old, sustained minor injuries.
Reached via Facebook Messenger on Saturday, Meldrum said he was still in the process of securing legal counsel, but claimed the protesters involved attacked his girlfriend.