One of the heavily armed Canadian Armed Forces members now charged with terrorism allegedly spoke openly about his will to use violence against government authorities and warned about another Waco massacre, according to recently unsealed court documents.
Last month the RCMP charged four Quebec men, all with military ties, for allegedly planning an ideologically motivated violent plot “intending to forcibly take possession of land in the Quebec City area.”
Alongside weapons charges, three of them — Marc-Aurèle Chabot, 24, Simon Angers-Audet, 24, and Raphaël Lagacé, 25, — have been charged with the serious offence of facilitating a terrorist activity.
A fourth individual, Matthew Forbes, 33, faces charges including possession of firearms, prohibited devices and explosives and possession of controlled items.
The Canadian Armed Forces confirmed Forbes and Chabot are serving members, both based at CFB Valcartier. Angers-Audet is a former CAF member and Lagacé was a civilian instructor with the Royal Canadian Air Cadets.
According to court documents, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service notified police in March 2023 about an Instagram account called hide_n_stalk and a possible national security threat.
That tipped off a years-long investigation known as Project Supion into an alleged well outfitted anti-government accelerationist group with growing members. (According to CSIS, accelerationists advocate for the violent destruction of society.)
The details are found in January 2024 information to obtain (ITO) requests, documents filed by police seeking a judge’s authorization to obtain a search warrant.
The documents provide a snapshot of where the investigation was at the time it was filed.
CBC/Radio-Canada and other media outlets fought for the documents to be made public and were successful Thursday afternoon.
The documents present Royal 22e Regiment member Chabot as the de facto leader who was trying to create a community opposed to what he saw as government overreach — and defend it by force if needed.
According to the documents, police allege Chabot was a guest on the podcast Modern Canadian Shooter and espoused comments that could be interpreted as accelerationist.
The June 14, 2023, episode is no longer available on Spotify, but according to a transcript of the interview cited in the ITO, Chabot spoke of building an anti-government community.
“That’s why building a community is important ‘cuz you cannot trust those bastards. I’ve seen how government works and I don’t want to have more of it,” he’s accused of saying.
“We got to come together and I’m not going (sic) do that half ass and just say we are gonna shoot them when they come in.”
Chabot is quoted as deeply opposed to the Liberal government’s gun control law, known as Bill C-21. He also didn’t appear to have any faith in the federal Conservative Party.
“I still don’t think there’s a political solution,” he’s accused of saying. “[Conservative Leader Pierre] Poilievre is always bought by the same people.”
“That’s why you need to be reliant on yourself, have a community that backs you. So whatever the f–k they try to pull, trying coming after dudes that prepared, are tight, run their shit well, you can’t,” Chabot allegedly said.
“It’s gonna be another Waco.”
That’s most likely a reference to the deadly 51-day standoff between the fringe Branch Davidian religious group and U.S. federal agents near Waco, Texas, in 1993.
The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms launched its raid because it suspected the group was illegally stockpiling weapons. It ended in flames and gunfire with more than 80 people dead, including four federal agents and at least 20 children.
Police allege Chabot was the main user behind hide_n_stalk and wore the patch HN1 during the group’s training exercises. Other members also donned HN patches with their corresponding numbers, according to the ITO.
RCMP investigators would go on to describe them as a pro-gun, extremist militant group.
Posts from the Instragram account cited by the RCMP show a member showing the OK sign, which investigators suggest is a white power symbol. It was used by the shooter in the 2019 mosque tragedy in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Investigators allege the group bought thousands of dollars worth of firearms and supplies.
Documents detail years of surveillance
According to the documents, the four men were under intense police surveillance since early 2023, including aerial and GPS tracking.
In May 2023, 17 people identified as members of the hide_n_stalk group were observed doing military-like training with longuns in the ZEC Batiscan-Neilson, a controlled wilderness area near Quebec City. Police later searched the site and found bullet casings.
According to analysis of video taken of the training offered at the ZEC, it follows the format offered by the Canadian Armed Forces.
The analysis said it’s clear the training given to the group was from a military-trained person. It notes the techniques being taught were basic, suggesting the trainers had little experience with them.
In July 2023, RCMP officers infiltrated a training camp offered by a company police say Lagacé was affiliated with. According to the documents, it was a training ground to prepare for a possible invasion. The documents say attendees were woken up in the middle of the night and trained how to cut throats and shoot people in the head.
Later that summer, CSIS learned about another training camp, this one near a residence in Rolphton, Ont., according to the document. It alleges Chabot and Anger-Audet were spotted there.
Police surveillance suggests on Sept. 11, 2023, another training session was held at a quarry owned by Lagacé’s family with about 10 individuals, including the four accused.
Undercover officer met with Forbes
In 2023 an RCMP informant also provided anonymous information that Forbes was in possession of weapons and involved in arms trafficking.
The ITO said in September 2023 an undercover officer sought night-vision goggles from Forbes.
When they met up for the transaction, the undercover officer said Forbes asked if the reason for the goggles was to “get ready when the shit hits the fan.”
The RCMP’s investigation appears to have sped up in January 2024. Early in the new year, Lagacé’s ex-partner called 911, warning that he was in possesion of illegal weapons and had made suicidal comments, according to the documents.
Quebec City police responded and discovered more than 50 firearms and boxes of ammunition.
A few days later the RCMP filed its ITOs and executed searches as part of Project Supion.
In the end it seized 16 explosive devices, 83 firearms and accessories, approximately 11,000 rounds of ammunition of various calibres and nearly 130 magazines.
None of the allegations against the four have been tested in court.
Angers-Audet, Lagacé and Chabot have been denied bail while they wait for their trial. Forbes has been granted bail under a lengthy list of conditions that includes wearing a GPS tracking bracelet.
Their next court date is scheduled for September.
