Patrik Mathews abruptly gave away beloved cats, concerned friends called RCMP, search warrant reveals
In August 2019 RCMP got a public safety search warrant for Mathews' Beausejour home to remove his firearms
Friends, former friends and co-workers of Patrik Mathews thought he was all talk until they read an article in the Winnipeg Free Press that identified him as a white supremacist who was actively recruiting for The Base, a secretive neo-Nazi paramilitary group, according to recently unsealed search warrant documents obtained by CBC News.
In August 2019, RCMP raided Mathews' Beausejour home searching for firearms and ammunition days after the Winnipeg Free Press published a story about the former Canadian military reservist and his association with The Base.
In a sworn affidavit, the Mounties said after the article came out they received numerous calls from people who knew Mathews who said they were concerned about his recent behaviour, and feared he might be planning something.
"Patrik had four cats that he loved and talked about all the time but out of nowhere, got rid of them all last week," wrote Corporal John Richard Hurley, a member of the RCMP's national weapons enforcement support team, in an Aug. 19, 2019 affidavit to the judge.
Police said that people who are planning to commit a terrorist attack often put their affairs in order.
"While there may be many innocent explanations for the cats being given away, this is one possible explanation that causes concern," said the affidavit.
One person told police "Patrik is online a lot, and in his opinion has been escalating and getting weirder and weirder over the last three to four weeks".
Mathews, 28, is facing up to 20 years in an American prison for weapons charges, destroying evidence and obstruction of justice in Maryland and Delaware. He pleaded guilty to the charges in July and will be sentenced in October.
CBC News went to court to fight for access to the search warrant documents. A redacted copy of the information to obtain a search warrant was provided to CBC last week, with names and relationships of the people who came forward to police edited out.
WATCH | Patrik mathews search warrant document details:
One person who knew Mathews said the former reservist was always overreacting, "extreme and passionate about certain things, always talks about politics but goes off on tangents and takes things too far."
The person said they believed Mathews was bipolar or schizophrenic and described him as a loner, with few friends who was online a lot.
According to the search warrant documents, Mathews had gone to the U.S. on June 1, 2019, and had difficulty returning to Canada that same day at a border crossing in Tolstoi, Manitoba.
RCMP said he was driving a rental vehicle that he got in Selkirk, Man., and that he told border guards he had no purchases as he was only in the U.S. for five to six hours visiting family in Lake Bronson, Minnesota.
When Canada Border Services Agency employees searched Mathews' backpack, they found posters about joining the fight against "white genocide."
"CBSA Officers also noted finding in Mathews' backpack a journal, in which was found a list that noted or documented all the mass shootings in the USA from 1988 to 2018," wrote Corporal Hurley.
"This list included the location, apparent reason for each shooting as well as whether the shooters had mental health problems, family issues etc. The list also noted whether the shooter in each mass shooting had ever made mention of joining 'The Base.'"
Mathews also told border guards the entries in his journal were "old research," and he admitted it wasn't smart to take them across the border.
"When asked about his involvement with 'The Base,' Mathews claims any of his postings were in reference to 'prepping.'"
Prepping is the practice of making active preparations for a possible catastrophic disaster or emergency, typically by stockpiling food, ammunition and other supplies.
"Mathews stated he was interested in 'prepping' and described the 'Base' as a bunch of misguided preppers, worried about storms, attacks on infrastructure collapse while he [Mathews] was concerned with sanitation and growing food in a sustainable manner," said Corporal Hurley's affidavit.
RCMP said Mathews claimed not to have any interest in violent action and said if anyone mentioned having such a desire, other members of the online community would discourage it and "hopefully" notify the authorities.
Police said based on Mathews' conduct, they had serious concerns about his ability to access or possess firearms.
"What I find troubling is the documented incident involving the 'journal' that Mathews has used to document mass shootings in the USA up until 2018. In conjunction with Mathews' association with a neo-Nazi/white supremacist hate group, I believe that Mathews is an adherent to this violent ideology," wrote Hurley.
"Further troubling is the as yet unknown and unexplored history on the Internet, that involves encrypted chat sites and groups, that by their very nature try to conceal the users and their content ... what is clear is the concern brought to police by Mathews' co-workers and friends or former friends who have chosen to not remain silent in light of Mathews past comment and musings at work," said the affidavit.
CBC Podcasts' upcoming season of Uncover will be about Patrik Mathews and his involvement with The Base. It will launch October 27. Hear it on the CBC Listen page.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
