Bail hearing for convoy organizer Pat King abruptly adjourned, new charges to be laid

OTTAWA-The latest bail hearing for Pat King, a key figure in the so-called Freedom Convoy" protests, was unexpectedly adjourned on Thursday after the Crown announced he would face two new criminal charges.

King, 44, sighed heavily, rubbed his eyes and held his head in his hands as Crown lawyer Moiz Karimjee stated he will be charged with obstruction of justice and perjury.

The far-right online influencer has been jailed since his arrest in February during the convoy occupation around Parliament Hill. He already faced a series of charges linked to his role in the protests that paralyzed Canada's capital this winter and spawned copycat demonstrations that blocked border crossings and sparked marches in cities across the country.

On top of the new charges, King is accused of counselling mischief, counselling intimidation, counselling obstruction of a peace officer, obstructing a peace officer, mischief, intimidation, counselling to disobey a court order and disobeying a court order.

His first attempt to get out of pretrial custody was denied on Feb. 25, when Ontario Court Justice Andrew Seymour ruled he posed a substantial likelihood" of reoffending if released, and that to grant King bail would cast doubt on the province's criminal justice system.

After hiring a new defence lawyer, David Goodman, King was attempting to appeal that bail decision in a review hearing that began on Wednesday.

But that hearing was abruptly adjourned as well, after Goodman - who was appearing by video - suffered an apparent computer glitch. A woman's voice started speaking through his computer speaker, stating that his computer had been locked and that he should not try to restart it.

The episode was placed under a publication ban, which Superior Court Justice Graeme Mew lifted on Thursday morning, after Goodman told the court that everything was fine and none of his files were compromised.

King is scheduled to return to court on April 19.

Alex Ballingall is an Ottawa-based reporter covering federal politics for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @aballinga