OTTAWA — An Ottawa man pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges of terrorism and hate speech related to the promotion of a far-right group.
The RCMP charged Patrick Gordon Macdonald in July 2023, alleging he took part in activities of a listed terrorist organization.
It’s the first case in Canada where the government laid charges for both terrorism and hate propaganda against someone for promoting a violent, far-right ideology.
Macdonald appeared in an Ottawa courthouse Monday and sat quietly in the aisle seat of the front-row bench, only standing briefly to deny all three charges against him.
As the trial opened in Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice, Crown prosecutors alleged Macdonald helped produce propaganda for the Atomwaffen Division.
Public Safety Canada listed Atomwaffen as a terrorist group in 2021, describing them as an international neo-Nazi organization.
Prosecutors alleged Macdonald aided in the production of three propaganda videos that were designed to recruit new members and incite hatred against Jews. Police allege he operated online under the alias "Dark Foreigner," an account that was active on Iron March, a now-defunct far-right social media website where the Atomwaffen group had emerged. That online user account made graphic designs for Atomwaffen, according to the U.S.-based Southern Poverty Law Centre.
Macdonald entered the public eye in 2021 when Vice Media identified him through confidential sources as the poster going by the "Dark Foreigner" moniker.
Most of the day Monday, the trial dealt with opaque procedural matters. It is set to resume Tuesday.
The allegations have not yet been proven in court.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 18, 2024.
Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press
