WATCH: After SWAT teams descended on an Ottawa hotel and arrested a man who had stockpiles of chemicals in a home near Halifax, Christopher Phillips was charged with threatening police and possessing a dangerous weapon. He’s been in custody ever since, but a judge has now set him free. Ross Lord has the story.
HALIFAX – A Halifax man accused of threatening police with a rare, dangerous chemical has been found not guilty of threatening police and possessing a dangerous weapon.
“Nothing went wrong with the case,” said Crown Attorney Karen Quigley. “The crown put forward the evidence that the police derived in the course of the investigation and the judge had a chance to review the evidence.”
Christopher Phillips was arrested inside an Ottawa hotel on Jan. 21 after police found a large stockpile of his chemicals in two locations in Nova Scotia.
WATCH: Natasha Pace reports on Phillips’ release and has the reaction from locals.
The chemicals prompted evacuations in Nova Scotia and at the Ottawa hotel where he was found.
The accused has been in jail for more than five months after pleading not guilty to the charges of threatening police officers and possessing a dangerous weapon – the chemical osmium tetroxide.
“It’s really concerning when someone can spend five months in jail for an offence that a reasonable person would conclude simply didn’t happen,” said Defence Lawyer Mike Taylor.
During the trial, Judge David MacAdam heard from a chemist who testified that it’s questionable whether the osmium tetroxide that Phillips had could have been a useful weapon.
ABOVE: Prosecutor, defence attorney comment on Christopher Phillips verdict
Phillips’s lawyer, Mike Taylor, has said his client was joking when he sent an email to a friend suggesting he could throw some of the chemical at officers if they entered his home.
It’s unclear if Phillips will get his stash of chemicals back.
With files from Natasha Pace.
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