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Videos posted online

Police warn against vigilantism following altercation in Ponoka

Feb 29, 2020 | 12:06 PM

The police investigation continues into a large altercation that took place in Ponoka earlier this week.

Ponoka RCMP say the incident happened in the early morning hours of February 22 in the 4800 block of 46 Street where two groups of teenaged males met in the street and an altercation ensued, leading to 12 arrests.

Initial charges against three adult males and two youths include, mischief, uttering threats and possession of a weapon. All five were released from custody with conditions and are to appear in court April 17.

On Friday, three more men and one additional male youth were charged with mischief, uttering threats and possession of a weapon, while Mounties say another adult male is currently being sought in relation to this investigation.

RCMP say names of the adults charged cannot be released at this time as their charges have yet to be sworn before the courts. The names of the youth cannot be released under provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Ponoka RCMP confirm that this incident was related to a “hold and secure” that occurred Friday at the Ponoka Secondary Campus.

“During the course of this investigation Ponoka RCMP received a complaint about two videos appearing on social media. It is believed that one of the videos is related to this current incident, while the second one does not appear to be related,” Alberta RCMP Corporal Mike Dunsmore says in a media release.

“The social media fall out from this overall situation has been unfortunate and resulted in some people not involved in either investigation to become targets of harassment. Police are asking people to refrain from vigilante actions and remind that any comments made or actions take that are criminal in nature will be investigated accordingly.”