Pastor Artur Pawlowski faces his final trial in Canada after years of arrests and imprisonment
A Canadian pastor is facing his final trial after three years of repeated fines, arrests and imprisonment for keeping his church open during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pastor Artur Pawlowski is arrested by Calgary police in the middle of a highway on his way home from church on May 8, 2021. (Artur Pawlowski)
Artur Pawlowski, pastor of the Cave of Adullam congregation in Calgary, said he is accused of causing $400 million worth of damages for officiating a church service during the trucker blockade at the U.S.-Canada border last year.
“This is the final culmination of over 40 tickets for the COVID tyranny, the house arrest, the prison, all of that stuff,” Pawlowski told Fox News Digital ahead of his trial, set to begin Thursday, Feb. 2, in Lethbridge, Alberta.
Pawlowski, the first Canadian clergyman to be ticketed for alleged COVID-19 violations, claims the charges against him are an attempt to criminalize his speech.
“It’s crazy stuff,” he said.
He also slammed Alberta’s new premier, Danielle Smith, who he said discussed his potential amnesty last fall but has since “backpedaled.”
WATCH PASTOR PAWLOWSKI INTERVIEW WITH LAURA INGRAHAM>>>>