A 34-year-old man has been arrested following alleged vandalism of a United Conservative Party office.
RCMP were called to the UCP St. Paul constituency office at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday night.
Police said several windows of the building had been damaged earlier in the evening.
Dave Hanson is the UCP MLA for the Lac La Biche, St. Paul and Two Hills area.
In a statement to media, he said large rocks were thrown through the windows after office hours. No one was there at the time.
According to Hanson, his office received an email Wednesday from a person who claimed responsibility for the incident and who identified themselves as an Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped recipient. The email, shared by the UCP, gestured toward a tweet by New Democratic Party Minister Irfan Sabir that suggested the UCP would cut AISH supports.
.@Alberta_UCP plan to give a $700 million tax break to the richest 1%. To pay for this, they would have to cut almost all of AISH which supports 60,000 people. Our govt will not let this happen - we will continue to fight for you and protect your services. #AbLeg #abpoli
— Irfan Sabir (@IrfanSabirMLA) January 16, 2019
Hanson denied the UCP would be making AISH cuts and said that while he did not believe the damage was caused by a person on behalf of any party, it served as a reminder of responsibility.
“Fear-mongering and peddling false claims for political gain can cause undue distress when programs and services people depend on are being used as a political ploy.”
A 34-year-old was charged with mischief and released. His name has not been released. He will appear in St. Paul Provincial Court on Feb. 21.
