Man arrested by anti-terrorism unit west of Edmonton sentenced to 6 years

An Alberta man has been sentenced to six years in prison after he pleaded guilty to a number of charges stemming from a series of social media posts.

Kelvin Gregory Maure was arrested in Parkland County after a multi-day police operation involving the RCMP's anti-terrorism unit in February of 2021.

He was accused of threatening police and the public through social media posts.

"Maure is alleged to have made several online posts with comments and photographs deemed to be a threat to critical infrastructure, the police and the public. These online activities together with other actions taken by Maure resulted in RCMP taking him into custody," Mounties wrote in a news release in April 2021.

“The accused was interacting online with like-minded individuals in posting extreme views that ultimately escalated towards him engaging in criminal activity that posed a considerable risk to public and police safety, ultimately resulting in his arrest.”

He originally faced more than 30 charges, including weapons offences and impersonating a police officer.

He pleaded guilty to three counts of possession of a loaded prohibited firearm for a Baikal Viking 9mm handgun, an AK-47 and an AK-74.

He also pleaded guilty to one count of careless storage of a firearm, possession of a prohibited device for a dangerous purpose, importing a prohibited device knowing it’s unauthorized, possession of an explosive substance, and break and enter to commit mischief at an Obsidian Energy site.

The remaining charges were withdrawn.

Maure also received a lifetime firearms ban in addition to his sentence.

His sentence was reduced to a little more than five years due to time served.