Threats to Aylmer Mayor come to a sudden stop

Aylmer Mayor Mary French was inundated with calls and emails, some of which were threats, after declaring a state of emergency in Aylmer on Monday, Nov. 2, ahead of a “freedom march” at the East Elgin Community Complex.

After publicly announcing the situation on CTV London the next day, she said the messages have come to a sudden stop.

“It tells me that someone is controlling the situation. Whoever is doing this works as a group,” noted Mayor French.

On Monday, Mayor French received more than 100 messages, many with a derogatory tone, to her town email, Facebook messenger, work number, and home number, from anonymous people. One caller identified themselves as a citizen from Ottawa.

Councillor Arthur Oslach noted he received some similar emails after the emergency declaration.

“They did say ‘don’t step out the front door because you won’t like what you see or find,’” said Mayor French.

“We’ve even considered getting rid of our phone that we’ve had for about 35 years because we’re being harassed.”

She said she reported the threats to Aylmer Police.