MONTREAL – A Montreal man is facing charges after being arrested for allegedly making an Internet threat against the Quebec legislature.
Quebec provincial police said in a statement that 58-year-old Daniel Seniw was arrested Wednesday evening with the assistance of Montreal police.
He was arraigned in a Montreal court on Thursday afternoon and charged with threats to cause death or bodily harm and could face a maximum sentence of ten years.
As part of his bail conditions, Seniw cannot come within 250 meters of the National Assembly nor contact anyone there.
He must also suspend his online subscription and cannot access the Internet via any other computers.
“I am very surprised. He’s a church goer. He volunteers at palliative care at the St. Mary’s hospital. He volunteers at a mental health board. This is one little glitch he did,” his wife, Janet Sinew, told Global News at the courthouse.
“Just be careful what you write on the Internet. You could end up in the same position.”
Sergeant Ann Mathieu, a spokesperson for the Sûreté du Québec, could not confirm any further details, except that Seniw was not known to previously known to police.
The threat apparently appeared on a private Facebook group called the Anglophone Community-Communauté Anglophone du Québec, where Seniw posted, “Well, I see an AK-47 walking into the National Assembly again and this issue will be passé!”
The administrators of the group did not respond to requests from Global News for an interview, however a Facebook post on the group page by Norman Simon addressed the issue.
“Last night, one of our members was arrested allegedly for incitement to violence,” it noted.
Simon confirmed that Seniw would not be removed from the group unless he was convicted of a crime.
He also requested that members not discuss the incident online.
Provincial police did take the opportunity to remind the public that uttering threats, even on the Internet, is considered a criminal offence that will be taken seriously and investigated.
Sinew is scheduled to reappear at the Quebec City courthouse on February 18.
– With files from The Canadian Press
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