A key figure in the 2022 Freedom Caravan campaign, who has now sought asylum in the United States, is wanted on a nationwide warrant in Canada. The warrant was issued after he failed to appear in an Ottawa court to answer criminal charges related to his role in the protests.

James Bowder, who left Canada this summer, faces charges including disorderly conduct and intimidation. He claims to have been the victim of “political harassment and persecution” and says he has raised about $13,000 online to pay for his legal fees.

He failed to appear in Ottawa Superior Court this week, and a judge issued a warrant for his arrest.

Bowder previously testified during the Public Commission’s inquiry into the implementation of the 2022 State of Emergency Act that he led a smaller convoy to Ottawa in 2021 to protest COVID-19 health restrictions. At the same time, he submitted a “memorandum of understanding” to the Senate and the Governor General, calling for the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions and the resignation of then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on charges of “treason and crimes against humanity.”

A native of Calgary, Bauder fled to the United States after claiming that the political climate in Ottawa prevented him from getting a fair trial. His efforts to move his case to other cities (Brockville or North Bay) were rejected by the court, with the judge calling his argument “baseless.”

The prosecutor’s office has also said there is no evidence of political bias in his case and that the Supreme Court is completely impartial.

Bauder is also a defendant in a class-action lawsuit filed by Ottawa citizens seeking millions of dollars in damages for damages stemming from three weeks of downtown protests in 2022.

Since arriving in the US, he has attended several media events and has been interviewed by figures close to Donald Trump, including Roger Stone and Wayne Allen Root. They have promised to deliver his asylum application directly to the US president.

Bauder's trial is scheduled for November and December this year. Other key leaders of the caravan protests, including Tamara Leach, Chris Barber and Pat King, have already been convicted of their crimes in the case.

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