Canadian troops arrested in alleged plot to seize territory near Quebec
Four Canadian residents, including active-duty military members, have been arrested over an alleged plot to seize land near Québec City and establish an anti-government militia, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
Authorities say the suspects, aged between their 20s and 30s, stockpiled an extensive cache of weapons, explosives, and ammunition in preparation for the operation, News.Az reports, citing The Washington Post.
The RCMP said the group had amassed 83 firearms, more than a dozen explosive devices, high-capacity magazines, and approximately 11,000 rounds of ammunition, all seized during a raid in January 2024.
Three of the suspects, Marc-Aurele Chabot, 24; Raphael Lagace, 25; and Simon Angers-Audet, 24, have been charged with facilitating terrorist activity. According to RCMP statements, they underwent military-style training, including ambush simulations, survival exercises, and scouting missions.
A fourth individual, Matthew Forbes, 33, is charged with the illegal possession of firearms, prohibited devices, and explosives. Authorities have not yet publicly identified the group's motive.
The suspects appeared in court virtually on Tuesday and remain in custody. It is unclear whether any of them have retained legal representation.
The arrests have drawn attention to growing concerns over domestic extremism in Canada and other Western democracies. Experts say the case fits a broader trend of small-cell, anti-government extremist plots, often involving individuals with military experience and radical ideologies cultivated online.
“This case has all the hallmarks of an accelerationist plot,” said Jon Lewis, a research fellow at George Washington University’s Program on Extremism. “You’re looking at young men, military training, a large arsenal, and anti-government sentiment driving it all.”
Accelerationism is a term used by some extremists who believe that escalating violence can destabilize governments and hasten societal collapse. While often associated with white supremacist ideologies, it is also embraced by various anti-government factions and online fringe movements.
Lewis explained that after the collapse of large extremist organizations in the late 20th century, many groups evolved into loosely connected, harder-to-track cells. These “leaderless” cells are now a key threat identified in domestic terrorism reports, including the 2025 U.S. Department of Homeland Security threat assessment, which warned of rising violence from small, radicalized groups or individuals.
Investigators said one of the suspects used Instagram to try and recruit others to the cause, posting images of men in camouflage gear holding assault rifles during training drills. The RCMP said social media played a significant role in the group’s formation and planning.
“The importance of social media really can’t be overestimated here,” Lewis noted. “It has become an incubator for this kind of networked extremism.”
The arrests come amid rising concerns in Canada about radicalization within the military and security forces. Authorities have pledged to review internal procedures and intelligence sharing to prevent similar plots in the future.
The RCMP said its investigation is ongoing and did not rule out additional arrests.
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