R v Mathews, 2023 MBPC 49

CITATION: R v Mathews, 2023 MBPC 49 THE PROVINCIAL COURT OF MANITOBA Winnipeg Centre BETWEEN His Majesty the King ) ) V. Gama for the Crown– and – ) ) Patrik Jordan Mathews Respondent ) ) ) ) ) ) Judgment Delivered: October 13, 2023 C.A. DEVINE, P.J. INTRODUCTION [1] This is a decision relating to an ex parte application by the Crown for an order of forfeiture of several firearms and ammunitionseized at the home of neo-Nazi Patrik Mathews, as well as an order prohibiting him from possessing any firearms or ammunition for aperiod of five years.

Mathews is a Canadian citizen currently serving a federal prison sentence in the United States (US) for possessionof firearms intended to be used for terrorist purposes. Background [2] Just over four years ago, members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) executed a Public Safety Warrant at thehome of Patrik Mathews in Beausejour, Manitoba. They seized over a dozen firearms and ammunition and a Possession and AcquisitionLicence (PAL) in the name of Patrik Jordan Mathews (Date of Birth 1992-11-18).

Mathews and members of the neo-Nazi group “TheBase” had been the subject of a lengthy undercover newspaper investigation undertaken by Winnipeg Free Press (Free Press) journalistRyan Thorpe. Mr. Thorpe’s exposé was printed by the Free Press on August 16, 2019. The search warrant was executed three days lateron August 19, 2019. [3] Mathews fled to the US days after the

article was published, where he was picked up and hidden by American members of TheBase. He and other members continued to recruit new members, amass and make firearms and large quantities of ammunition, acquiremilitary and survivalist gear and rations, and train for battle. They planned to mount a terrorist offensive at a pro-gun rally in Richmond,Virginia in January, 2020. [4] The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) conducted an extensive undercover and surveillance operation on Mathews and twoother members of The Base. They arrested him and the others days before the pro-gun rally in Richmond.

Application to Proceed Ex Parte [5] I granted the Crown’s application that the hearing be held ex parte. Mathews is in a federal prison in the US serving asentence for related, terrorist firearms offences. Although the Crown attempted service of the forfeiture application in 2019 for anOctober 15, 2019 hearing, Mathews had fled the country and could not be served. A second application was served on him personallyon November 2, 2022 at the federal prison in Wisconsin where he is serving his sentence.

The Crown had a detailed letter personallyserved on him on June 15, 2023, advising he could consent to the order, attend the hearing via teleconference or have a lawyer representhim at the hearing, and if the Crown did not receive a response from him, they would proceed ex parte. He has not responded. The Test for Forfeiture and Prohibition [6] The Supreme Court of Canada considered the nature of the Criminal Code weapons forfeiture and prohibition hearing in thecase of R v Zeolkowski, (SCC), [1989] 1 SCR 1378.

The orders are part of a comprehensive legislative scheme enactedin 1977 to govern the possession and use of firearms as a public safety measure. In R v Douglas, 2013 ONCJ 649, Justice Greentrenchantly stated the purpose of the provision (at para 56):

I begin with the obvious: firearms are dangerous. Their possession by persons who are unstable or disposed to physical anger, violence, intemperate behaviour or poor impulse control cannot be countenanced. In the language of s. 117.05(4), such persons’ possession of firearms is “not desirable”. In applying this provision one must not forget, as said analogously of s. 117.04(1) in R. v. Hurrell , supra , at para. 31, that it “is preventative in nature. Its primary purpose is the prevention of serious injury and death resulting from the use of firearms and other dangerous objects.” [ 7 ]

Section 117.05(4) of the Criminal Code states: Where, following the hearing of an application made under subsection (1), the justice finds that it is not desirable in the interests of the safety of the person from whom the thing was seized or of any other person that the person should possess any weapon, prohibited device, ammunition, prohibited ammunition and explosive substance, or any such thing, the justice shall

a) order that any thing seized be forfeited to Her Majesty or be otherwise disposed of; and

b) where the justice is satisfied that the circumstances warrant such an action, order that the possession by that person of any weapon, prohibited device, ammunition, prohibited ammunition and explosive substance, or of any such thing, be prohibited during any period, not exceeding five years, that is specified in the order, beginning on the making of the order. [ 8 ] The first substantive issue in this case is whether, following the hearing, I am satisfied that it is not desirable in the interests of the safety of any other person that the person should possess any weapon . [ 9 ] The second substantive issue in this case is whether circumstances warrant that Mathews be prohibited from possessing any weapon, prohibited device, ammunition, prohibited ammunition and explosive substance, or any such thing . [ 10 ] The burden of proof is balance of probabilities and hearsay evidence is admissible ( see Zeolkowski at paras 16 to 18 ). [ 11 ] The public safety assessment under Criminal Code subsection 117.05(4) is to be made at the time of the hearing, not at the time of the events given rise to the application ( see Douglas at paras 45 and 57 ).

In this case, over four years have passed. Therefore it is important to consider not only what happened on the day the guns were seized, but what has happened since that time to reduce or eliminate the safety risk that Mathews posed the day his firearms were seized. The Evidence [ 12 ] The Crown called as witnesses, two members of specialized security and firearms units with the RCMP who were involved in the investigation and seizure of Mathews’ firearms and ammunition. Corporal Ursula Finkel is a 27-year veteran of the force and is with the National Security Enforcement

Section (NSES). Corporal James Helyer, a 31-year veteran, is with the National Weapons Enforcement Support Team (NWEST). [ 13 ] Late on August 15, 2019, police forces were advised that the extensive Free Press

article would be coming out in print the following day; they were provided an online version of the article. The newspaper wanted to advise law enforcement and the Canadian military, since the journalist who had infiltrated the organization believed Mathews could act up or become erratic, and possessed a lot of firearms and ammunition. [ 14 ] The

article is an in-depth, detailed exposé of Mathews and The Base. At the time the

article was written, little was known about The Base. The Public Safety Branch of the Canadian government did not have it listed as a terrorist entity. Today it is listed as a terrorist entity, along with Hamas, Hizballáh, and Al-Qaida. The Base means Al-Qaida in Arabic. [ 15 ] Thorpe’s

article was the impetus for law enforcement to further investigate Mathews. It was filed as an exhibit at this hearing. [ 16 ] Thorpe responded to flyers put up by Mathews around Winnipeg in 2019, to recruit members for The Base. The posters were emblazoned with fascist imagery and bore the phrase, “Save your Race, Join the Base”. Stacks of these and similar posters were found by police when they executed the warrant at Mathews’ home in August, 2019.

The posters were printed on the printer in his home. [ 17 ] Thorpe was put through a multi-tiered vetting process before being invited to join The Base. [ 18 ] Mathews and other members of The Base have a plan to destabilize the current world order and instigate race wars to remove all Jewish people and non-Caucasians to create white ethno-states. At the time of Thorpe’s article, their plan was to create as many “two to three man cells” in as many regions of North America, Europe, Australia and South Africa as possible.

They are considered the most extreme of the ultra right-wing and neo-Nazi groups in operation. [ 19 ] While Thorpe was undercover, he provided the Free Press with chilling photos of Base hate camps and meet ups throughout North America, showing members doing target practice, giving Nazi salutes and showing off weaponry, all accompanied by anti-Semitic, racist, misogynistic and homophobic comments, and members speaking approvingly of rape, and murdering racial minorities and journalists.

They idolize mass murderers and terrorists such as Timothy McVeigh, Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof, and Brenton Tarrant who killed 51 people in two New Zealand mosques in 2019. A handwritten note from Tarrant (imprisoned) was posted by a Base member and Tarrant was referred to as “Saint” Tarrant.

These killers are referred to as the “gold standard” because of their high death counts. “If you can’t keep up, don’t bother”, wrote one Base member in their encrypted chats. [ 20 ] At the time Thorpe wrote his article, the Centre on Hate, Bias and Extremism had conducted a study showing that the number of hate groups had tripled in Canada between 2015 and 2019; coincidentally, the number of hate crimes in Canada rose by 47 percent in

2017. [ 21 ] Mathews was a military reservist and trained as a combat engineer. He told Thorpe however, that he intended to leave the military because he felt he could no longer serve the ZOG (neo-Nazi conspiracy theorists refer to the “Zionist Occupied Government” as a Jewish cabal that secretly controls governments in the west). [ 22 ] He encouraged Thorpe to get a gun licence and said he could provide him a firearm for paramilitary training. [ 23 ] The RCMP learned in their investigation that Mathews had a Possession and Acquisition Licence (PAL) and a restricted handgun registered to him.

They also learned that the Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA) had stopped him at the US border and he was not permitted entry into the US in July, 2019 because a search of his vehicle revealed a poster referencing the White Defence League and joining forces against “white genocide” and “taking action”. He also had a list of all mass shootings in the US from 1988 to 2018, including the location, motivations and state of mind of the shooters. [ 24 ] RCMP officers executed the warrant at Mathews’ residence on August 16, 2019. They found and seized the following firearms: a.

Tokarev Model TT-33 Handgun, Serial # (Russian Cyrillic letters KR) 5984 b. Simonov, Model SKS dated 1945 rifle, Serial # (Russian Cyrillic letters TO) 7922 (Russian Cyrillic

A) c. Simonov, Model SKS dated 1945 rifle, Serial # (Russian Cyrillic letters 3P) 42124 d. Tokarev, Model SVT 1940 rifle, Serial # (Russian Cyrillic letter C) 1369 e. Mosin-Nagant, Model 1938 Carbine rifle, Serial # (Russian Cyrillic letters K6) 8449 f. EMEI, Model T97 NSR rifle, Serial # 14001120 g. Chiappa firearms, Model M305 rifle, Serial # P142736 h. PAL # 12844556 in the name of Patrik Jordan Mathews (1992-11-18) i. Assorted ammunition j. Two

(2) Tippmann paintball guns k. Seven (7) assorted airsoft type pellet guns l. Three (3) assorted airsoft type pellet [hand] guns m. Daisy, Model 1938 bb gun [ 25 ] None of the firearms or ammunition were safely stored.

The paintball, pellet and bb guns also meet the Criminal Code definition of firearms. [ 26 ] In addition to several firearms and ammunition, the police also found stacks of recruitment posters and other neo-Nazi posters and flyers, and the printer on which they were printed; a packing tape dispenser used to put posters up around Winnipeg (as witnessed by Thorpe); load-bearing military vests containing magazines of ammunition; load-bearing kits; and a military waist belt containing loaded ammunition magazines and the PAL in Mathews’ name. [ 27 ] The RCMP received information from Mathews’ family on August 26, 2019 that he was missing, as was his vehicle, cell phone and laptop.

His vehicle was found outside of the Sprague, Manitoba border crossing town on September 2, 2019. Police believe he crossed the Canada-US border on foot and then was picked up by American Base members, which was subsequently confirmed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). He was and is an illegal alien in the US. [ 28 ] Subsequently, Mathews’ PAL was revoked on September 13, 2019. He has been discharged by the Canadian Armed Forces. [ 29 ] Mathews and two American members of The Base were the subject of a lengthy FBI investigation, leading to their arrest in Delaware on January 16, 2020.

They had planned to use a pro-gun rights rally in Richmond, Virginia scheduled for January 20, 2020 to engage in mass murder and attacks on critical infrastructure, which they believed would spark the race war, or Boogaloo (a term meaning the collapse of the US government in order to prop up a white ethno-state). They planned to derail rail lines, shut down highways, shut down other roads and systematically murder and destroy to force the capitulation of the US government. They planned to murder a law enforcement officer to obtain more gear for the Virginia plan.

They were arrested on January 16, 2020, days before the rally. FBI found tactical gear, 1,500 rounds of ammunition, firearms and military-packed cases of food and supplies, and neo-Nazi propaganda in the residence Mathews shared with another Base member.

The firearms included a sniper rifle, home-made assault-style “ghost gun” and a night-vision scope. [ 30 ] They also found Base propaganda flyers, notes that suggested Mathews had vetted an applicant to The Base, and several videos of Mathews espousing violent, anti-Semitic and racist language, several times discussing killing people in furtherance of “the movement”. The following is part of the agreed statement of facts from Mathew’s sentencing hearing in the US: Intercepted communications obtained from a court-authorized closed circuit television camera and microphone installed in the Delaware

residence and other evidence showed that the defendants believed that a pro-firearms rally in Richmond, Virginia on January 20, 2020, would begin the collapse of the United States government, which white nationalists often refer to as the Boogaloo. After the November 2019 state elections both chambers of the Virginia legislature and the Governor were controlled by elected representatives from the Democratic Party. The defendants believed that the Democrats intended to use their power to pass a variety of gun control and other legislation anathema to the white nationalist cause.

The defendants believed that at the rally on January 20, they and other like-minded confederates would begin systematically murdering and destroying to force the capitulation and demise of the U.S. government. The evidence showed that the defendants began preparing for the Virginia violence weeks before the scheduled rally. [Brief of the Applicant at para 23.] [ 31 ] During the investigation, there was significant wiretap and other surveillance. One of the wire taps has Mathews saying: We need to go back to the days of ... decimating Blacks and getting rid of them where they stand . . .

If you see a bunch of Blacks sitting on some corner you f***ing shoot them. You wanna create f***ing some instability while the Virgina situation is happening, make other things happen.

Derail some rail lines . . . shut down the highways . . . shut down the rest of the roads . . . kick off the economic collapse of the U.S. within a week after the [Boogaloo] starts. [Brief of the Applicant at para 14.] [ 32 ] Eventually Mathews pleaded guilty to several firearms charges, including illegal possession of a machine gun and destruction of evidence in a federal investigation, which related to smashing and flushing their cell phones in the toilet as the FBI was entering the residence to execute the search and arrest warrants.

US prosecutors were successful in obtaining a Terrorism Sentencing Enhancement by the sentencing judge, US District Judge Theodore D. Chuang. [ 33 ] On October 28, 2021, Mathews was sentenced to nine years in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. He is currently serving his sentence in a federal prison in Wisconsin. [ 34 ] Judge Chuang found Mathews to be a member of The Base and that his crimes were committed with the intent to promote federal terrorist crimes. The Application [ 35 ] The application by the Crown is brought pursuant to

section 117.05 of the Criminal Code . The Court must be satisfied on a balance of probabilities after hearing all relevant evidence on the matter, that it is not desirable for Mathews to possess guns. [ 36 ] I have determined that the Crown has met its onus in satisfying me that the firearms should not be returned to Mathews and that he should be prohibited from possessing any firearms for a period of five years. [ 37 ] At the time of the seizure of the guns, Mathews was an active neo-Nazi who was recruiting and training members of a neo- Nazi, right-wing group.

He was amassing firearms, weaponry and survivalist gear for the purpose of mass murder of innocent civilians and destabilization of democracy. Since that time, his activities have continued and escalated in the US. He has now been convicted for terrorist activities with other members of The Base in the US. Canada now lists The Base as a terrorist entity. He has demonstrated that he will cross international borders to accomplish his goals. [ 38 ] It is not in the interests of anyone that Mathews possess firearms or weapons of any kind.

He is now a convicted terrorist serving a federal sentence in the US, but he will be deported to Canada at the conclusion of the sentence, as he is in the US illegally. The conditions in the world today are even more fractured and violent than they were at the time of the seizure of the firearms at Mathews’ residence. The risk that Mathews would pose if armed are elevated.

The world has experienced a polarizing global pandemic, many of Mathews’ compatriots stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, and very recently, anti-Semitic attacks against Israeli citizens have rocked the world. [ 39 ] The Crown’s application is granted. The firearms, ammunition and other items seized by the RCMP at Mathews’ residence on August 19, 2019 are forfeited to the Crown. Patrik Jordan Mathews is prohibited from possessing any firearms, weapons, prohibited devices, explosive substances or ammunition for a period of five years from the date of this order. Original signed by Judge Devine C.A.

DEVINE, P.J.