Diane Therrien, the mayor of Peterborough, Ontario, Canada lashed out at QAnon adherents who tried to conduct citizens arrests of police officers in the city before being arrested themselves.
The QAnon followers acted at the behest of Romana Didulo—the self-proclaimed "QAnon Queen of Canada"—who acquired a substantial following by claiming she is the rightful leader of a country at the mercy of a pedophilic global elite.
At least two QAnon adherents are facing charges of assaulting police and resisting arrest and mischief following the stunt, which drew the ire of Therrien, who said on Twitter she hates "giving airtime/spotlight to these imbeciles."
But Therrien went further, declaring,
"Here is my comment: f*ck off, you f*ckwads."
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Therrien later issued another tweet requesting those offended by her profanity call her cell phone number and talk to her directly rather than berate her staff.
Many came to Therrien's defense and criticized QAnon and anyone who believes the conspiracy theories associated with it.
QAnon—whose believers allege the world is run by a Satan-worshipping, baby-eating global pedophile ring that conspired against former Republican President Donald Trump during his time in office—has been making waves across the Canadian border.
QAnon gained further notoriety in Canada earlier this year after, at least in part, inspiring the "Freedom Convoy"— a protest allegedly led by Canadian truckers who pushed back against COVID-19 public health measures.
The convoy—comprised of a minority of the country's truckers—retaliated after the United States and Canada agreed to COVID-19 vaccine requirements for truckers to re-enter the country by land. The protest was heavily scrutinized after organizers and groups were linked with White nationalist contingents, QAnon and other far-right groups in the United States.
In February, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau evoked the country's Emergencies Act for the first time since its passing in 1988, kicking off a large-scale operation that ultimately cleared the majority of protesters and dismantled much of the movement.
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