An Australian man who lives in Kelowna is facing several charges, including one for hate speech, stemming from alleged threats he made towards people in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The National RCMP’s international investigations section launched an investigation in 2020, after receiving a complaint regarding videos circulating online in which a man was alleged to have uttered threats towards people living in the Katanga region of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The RCMP later identified Kibwe Ngoie-Ntombe as a suspect and arrested him in Kelowna on June 12, 2020. Local Mounties executed a search warrant at his residence, seizing various electronic devices and he was later charged with three separate counts of uttering threats and two for counselling the commission of an indictable offence — one for aggravated assault and one for arson.
On May 20, 2021, prosecutors approved another charge against Ngoie-Ntombe for the willful promotion of hatred.
RCMP Insp. François Courtemanche said the outcome of the investigation was made possible through the work of officers in Canada, the United States, South Africa, Australia and Kenya.
Ngoie-Ntombe is scheduled to next appear in court in Kelowna on May 25.
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