An email sent Wednesday warned that Patron has allegedly been trespassing on the U of S campus in Saskatoon and impersonating staff.
Thia James, Saskatoon StarPhoenix
Travis Patron, who touted himself as the leader of a far-right political party and was convicted of wilful promotion of hatred and assault, has been charged with impersonating a peace officer and criminal harassment in Saskatoon.
Saskatoon police announced Wednesday evening an unnamed 32-year-old man from Redvers had been arrested that afternoon after police “attended to an address” in the 200 block of Fifth Avenue North where he was arrested without incident. They did not release his name.
Court documents identify the man as Travis Mitchell Patron. He appeared in Saskatoon provincial court on Thursday morning and was remanded to his next scheduled court appearance on Wednesday.
Patron had been the subject of an email sent by the University of Saskatchewan to members of the campus community Wednesday morning warning that he allegedly “continues to trespass” on the university’s property and had reportedly impersonated university staff.
Staff and students were advised to report any sightings of Patron on campus to Protective Services. An image captured by a surveillance camera, provided by the university, shows a man with a clean-shaven head and beard and is date-stamped July 31.
Saskatoon police said they had been called to a hotel in the 600 block of Spadina Crescent East on Saturday after receiving a report about a disturbance involving a man who was allegedly impersonating a peace officer.
Arriving officers were told a man approached a woman and her child, identified himself as police and accused her of abduction.
The woman went into the hotel for help while the man followed her inside, causing a disturbance, but bystanders intervened and the man fled the area on foot, police said.
Court records show Patron is accused of falsely representing himself as a federal law enforcement officer, yelling at and chasing a woman, causing her reasonable fear for her safety and that of her daughter.
In a second incident reported Tuesday, police say they were told about a similar incident that happened on Monday around 2 p.m. in the 70 block of Campus Drive.
Police said they were told a man had allegedly approached a woman, identified himself as a peace officer and offered to escort her through the area. The woman declined and the man left, police said.
“Video evidence and continued investigation identified the suspect and confirmed him to be responsible for both occurrences,” police said in the media release.
Court records show Patron is alleged to have breached a release order issued by the Court of King’s Bench, specifically failing to keep the peace and be of good behaviour.
Patron is charged with two counts of impersonating a peace officer, criminal harassment and two counts of failing to comply with court-imposed conditions.
In April, he lost an appeal to overturn his 2022 conviction after a jury trial for wilful promotion of hatred against an identifiable group and his one-year jail sentence, with 168 days left to serve after remand credit and one year of probation.
The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal found his arguments about jurisdiction had no basis in law.
Patron was accused of promoting hatred of Jewish people; the trial focused on a video he published calling for removing “these people, once and for all, from our country.”
Patron was sentenced to 18 months in jail earlier in 2022 for assaulting two women in 2019; with credit for time spent in remand, his remaining sentence was one day in custody.
He was convicted in 2021 of mischief and breach of undertaking; the mischief charge was related to his unwanted presence at Redvers Legion Hall and refusal to leave.
Patron led the Canadian Nationalist Party, which was de-registered for failure to comply with a section under the Canada Elections Act in 2022.
