An early morning raid of the former Richmound School resulted in the arrest of the self-proclaimed 'Queen of Canada' Romana Didulo.
Saskatchewan RCMP confirmed 17 individuals, including Didulo, were arrested during the execution of a search warrant at the former school.
"The search warrant was obtained after we received a report of an individual occupying the building in possession of a firearm," said Saskatchewan RCMP Major Crimes Branch Inspector Ashley St. Germaine. "After receiving this report, Saskatchewan RCMP began an extensive investigation. This included careful monitoring of any risk of public safety and to the community of Richmound."
All arrests were completed by 6 a.m. RCMP were not able to identify any other individuals. Ten were arrested inside the building, six were arrested in the RVs, and one was arrested outside of Richmound.
"There are approximately eight RVs parked on the property," St. Germaine said. "A team of officers cleared the RVs, while another team methodically cleared the building from one side to the other."
Police were able to confirm Didulo was among those arrested after she had live-streamed her arrest on social media.
"One of the individuals that was inside the building identified herself as Romana Didulo," St. Germaine said. "She presented herself and identified herself and released it to the public, so I can confirm she is in custody."
RCMP couldn't confirm if all those arrested were members of Didulo's Kingdom of Canada group.
"I can't speak to who all of the individuals are and if they're all associated to the Kingdom of Canada," St. Germaine noted. "Romana Didulo has identified herself as the leader of that group, so I expect that some of those people are associated to the Kingdom of Canada, but I don't have confirmation of those details."
RCMP involved in this effort included the Saskatchewan RCMP, Critical Incident Response Team, Tactical Support Group, Containment Team, Police Dog Services, Provincial General Investigation Section, Remotely Piloted Aircraft System, and Detachment Members.
Phase two of the investigation is underway. The Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency is also investigating modifications to the structure that the RCMP discovered.
RCMP stated that the large police presence, over 30 vehicles in attendance on this case with two tactical vehicles, was necessitated due to the unknown variables after the August 25th report of at least one firearm at the former school.
"We have located and seized four replica handguns," St. Germaine noted. "One inside the building and three inside vehicles."
RCMP confirmed they have yet to lay any charges in this case, and they still need to process all 17 individuals. Police have 24 hours to issue a charge before they are forced to release these individuals. In the event they are released with no charges in the first 24 hours, they may still be charged in the future.
If officers uncover additional evidence of further criminal activity, they may bring forward more charges.
Police expect the search warrant will take an extended amount of time to fully complete.
They couldn't fully speak to whether the former school would be re-inhabited.
"We're not really in the business of preventing people from occupying specific places," St. Germaine said while referencing the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency into the state of the building. "Whether the school is deemed habitable or not isn't a decision the RCMP can make."
Didulo and her followers have occupied the facility since September 2023.
Regina Police Service aided in this effort. Saskatchewan Major Crimes will be leading this investigation going forward.
