Investigations begin into police actions as downtown Ottawa streets quiet

Behind a police fence and concrete barricades, Ottawa's snowy downtown woke to the first quiet morning since a convoy of vaccine mandate protesters rolled into the city more than three weeks ago.

Police vehicles and a significant police presence have replaced semi-truck trailers and protesters in the main downtown protest site on Wellington Street, within the police-secured area stretching from Bronson Avenue to the Rideau Canal, and from the Queensway to Parliament Hill.

Police fenced off the area immediately surrounding the Parliamentary Precinct, where protesters had been entrenched since late January, until a series of police advances throughout the day Saturday pushed the crowd first west, then south, away from Parliament Hill.

They continue to tell people to avoid the downtown core and warn residents who have vehicles parked between Metcalfe and Bay streets and Albert and Gloucester streets to move their vehicles or risk being towed.

In a series of updates on Twitter, the Ottawa Police Service said it would maintain a police presence downtown, actively work to identify and charge protesters, and tow and impound vehicles abandoned in the secured area.

As of late morning, police announced they had made 191 arrests and towed 57 vehicles related to the protest. The vehicles include heavy trucks, pickup trucks and cars.

Of those arrested, police said 103 people have been charged, with the majority facing charges of mischief and obstructing police. Eighty-nine have been released on bail conditions that include being prohibited from going within a certain area of the protests. The others were released without any conditions.

On Sunday, Ontario's Special Investigations Unit said it was investigating two incidents that occurred on Friday and Saturday, when officers were clearing the streets. One involved a 49-year-old woman who reported a serious injury after an interaction with a Toronto police officer on horseback, and the other stems from officers discharging Anti-Riot Weapon Enfields at people near Sparks Street and Bank Street.

Police said vehicles will be impounded for seven days, but Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said Saturday he would like the impounded vehicles to be sold to help the city recover the costs of the occupation.

Watson told CBC News that the city has the power to do so from the Emergencies Act, which was invoked by the federal government last week.

Police action downtown convinced at least some protesters at the other major protest site — the semi-permanent camp at the Coventry Road parking lot — to pack up and leave.

Tents and other structures at the site were dismantled over the course of several hours on Saturday afternoon, despite no visible police presence in the area.

Approximately two dozen vehicles remained in the parking lot Sunday morning.

Police wearing face shields and armed with batons reclaimed much of the main Wellington Street protest site by early Saturday afternoon but continued active crowd control into the evening.