Overview
- RCMP, which returned to Potlotek on Friday, towed seven vehicles left after the protest and reported six with broken windows, removed or flat tires, dents, and urine-soaked interiors as investigations continue.
- Officers had raided the Sikku Shop in Potlotek around 7:30 a.m. Thursday, seized cannabis products, arrested two men, and left on foot after protesters blocked Highway 4 and surrounded police vehicles.
- Solidarity actions reduced traffic on Highway 102 near Sipekne'katik and drew protesters to Millbrook on Thursday, and RCMP said all affected highways reopened by Friday morning after talks with community leaders.
- Mi'kmaw chiefs and protesters say the issue is jurisdiction over trade and community safety on unceded lands, while the province points to laws that limit sales to the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation and court rulings against cannabis as a treaty right.
- A Potlotek band councillor said outsiders likely caused much of the vehicle damage and warned the raid hurt trust with local RCMP, raising the risk of new charges and a deeper political clash set in motion by the attorney general’s December enforcement directive.