Pardoned Jan. 6 Defendant Still in Custody in Canada
The Facts
A lawyer for the pardoned Jan. 6 defendant Antony Vo from Indiana has told the National Post that authorities in Canada refused to call off an admissibility hearing on Wednesday and free his client, despite Vo's pardon status and the withdrawal of his asylum claim.
This comes as US District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan on Tuesday granted a motion from the US Department of Justice to dismiss the indictment against Vo — with prejudice — allowing him to return to America without facing arrest.
Vo was detained "without incident" as a fugitive from US justice while snowboarding in Whistler, B.C., in the first week of 2025. There's no record of him entering Canada, because he did so through an open road rather than an official port of entry.
The Spin
Pro-Trump narrative
This is part of a petty political vendetta against Donald Trump that ultimately threatens the rights of an innocent US citizen. It is unacceptable that Trudeau and his allies have held Antony Vo hostage in a detention center despite his pardon status and willingness to return home.
Anti-Trump narrative
This development has nothing to do with politics, but everything to do with protocols. Antony Wo entered Canada as a fugitive from the US, and Canada must evaluate all cases such as his. That Trump pardoned him and his indictment has been dismissed in America means little to a sovereign nation like Canada, which must still uphold its own security.