Tables turned as Romana Didulo, supporters attempt to ‘arrest’ Peterborough police

The “queen of Canada” led supporters to Peterborough’s police station on Saturday, calling for the “citizen’s arrest” of local officers.

Instead, two of her supporters were arrested.

Romana Didulo is a B.C. resident who claims to be an alien being with higher powers, and insists she is the ruler of Canada and, more recently, the world.

“I am the head of state, commander in chief and head of government and queen of Canada replacing Queen Elizabeth II of England who has now been executed for crimes against humanity,” Didulo said in a September YouTube video.

She has thousands of supporters across the country, including in Peterborough, where Frank Curtin organized Saturday’s event.

He promoted it with a written statement from Didulo calling on “armed forces, special forces, black ops and special ops” to come to Peterborough to assist in the arrests of police over their enforcement of COVID-19 measures.

The only arrests were made by police.

Officers arriving for work at 4 p.m. were blocked from entering the building, police reported, adding that protesters tried to enter the station. “The officers attempted to take a protester into custody when officers were surrounded. A protester then struck two officers. In all there were about 30 protesters at the time of the incident,” police stated.

This took place in a restricted parking area behind the station.

Police charged a man from Millbrook, 54, with mischief and resisting arrest and another man, 56, with two counts of assaulting police. They were to appear in court Sunday.

Although no names were released, one of the many social media videos shot and shared at the scene by Didulo’s followers shows Curtin being dragged into the station by police, his camouflage T-shirt coming off in the process.

Police ask anyone with video to either send a link to aru@peterborough.ca or to call 705-876-1122 ext. 555 or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or at http://stopcrimehere.ca.

How it began

Earlier Saturday, people started to gather over the noon hour before Curtin addressed the crowd, calling for peace and calm. As about 40 people gathered around 1 p.m., Curtin, who was livestreaming the event, told the crowd to wait for the “military” to arrive.

“I don’t have a problem going to get lunch, their suppers, even get cots if you want to sleep here,” Curtin told the crowd via a megaphone. “We are not leaving here today, and when those officers try to leave here today, we are going to arrest them.”

He then led the way to the police station door, only to find it locked, with no response when he rang the buzzer and knocked.

One man with Curtin suggested striking a counterprotester to get the police’s attention, adding “I’m joking!”

That counterprotester was a person wearing an orange medical mask and carrying a sign reading “Vaccines Save Lives.” He chanted the slogan repeatedly, along with “Hail Satan.”

At one point, when members of the group gathered at Confederation Square, the counterprotester was confronted and told to leave. One of Didulo’s supporters then grabbed and tore the sign.

In another interaction caught on video, a woman yanked the man’s backpack and pulled his mask off his face before another man stepped in and advised her to leave him be, saying “Don’t engage — that’s what they want.”

Later, police issued a statement: “ … an incident involving a protester and a counter-protestor occurred. Police are currently investigating this incident.”

Didulo has called on her supporters to kill people promoting vaccines for children.

She and her supporters also recommend not paying bills and regularly serve “cease and desist” orders on police, pharmacists and health workers over health mandates. She raises money through online crowdfunding.

Many of Didulo’s ideas come from QAnon, a U.S. conspiracy movement whose followers believe in an organized child trafficking network led by Democrats, and that Donald Trump is their saviour. They’re also opposed to all COVID-19 measures, saying the pandemic is a hoax.

By mid-afternoon the group continued to gather at the main entrance of the station at Water and McDonnel streets. A smaller group stood at a rear entrance.

Didulo herself arrived in an RV with her photograph on the side, accompanied by a black vehicle with her faux presidential seal and several security staff wearing white hats, pants and jackets.

She stepped out briefly to hand out bottled water and plates of food to supporters.

After the arrests, Didulo took to social media to livestream about the incident, saying she had seen a triangular military craft above the police station with “special forces.”

The gathering attracted a few onlookers not associated with Curtin or Didulo, including people lining the sidewalks and nearby residents sitting on their porches and front steps to watch the events unfold.

A smaller group of protesters remained on the scene into the evening, as did Didulo’s RV, which left the area around 7 p.m.

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