Daryl Grant MacAskill appears in undated photo.

Image Credit: waybackmachine.com

A BC judge has issued an arrest warrant for a serial harasser and prolific blogger currently being sued for defamation by a Kelowna orchardist family.

On May 6, BC Supreme Court Justice John Gibb-Carsley issued the arrest warrant for blogger Daryl Grant MacAskill, so he can be brought in front of the court facing the allegation that he’s breached a court order by continuing to publish blogs.

Last October, Justice Ward Branch ruled MacAskill’s words were “hurtful and extreme” and ordered him to remove a series of blogs he had written about the family. 

However, MacAskill didn’t remove the posts, kept on writing and failed to turn up to court.

The judge’s move to issue an arrest warrant is a severe step rarely seen in civil cases.

It’s unknown why the 62-year-old began targeting the Sandher family, but last spring the serial harasser and blogger with a lengthy history of defamation and extortion set his sights on them.

Writing under the name Ace Ventura, MacAskill's website Gangsterism Out, began making entirely unproven allegations about the family and their business.

His blogs accused the family of everything from international drug dealing to having a chemical weapon production site in Kelowna.

"The information (MacAskill) has posted on his Blog is so woefully devoid of facts that it does not satisfy the definition of public interest. Indeed, unsourced and false accusations may be better characterized as 'misinformation,'" Justice Gibb-Carsley said in the May 6 decision. 

READ MORE: 'HE WILL NOT STOP': Serial harasser has Kelowna family in crosshairs

MacAskill had argued his blog was in the public interest and shouldn’t be removed, but the Justice didn't agree.

"The spreading of misinformation or lies is not in the public interest," the Justice said.

Justice Gibb-Carsley also said MacAskill used "abuse and vitriol" in the more than 400 emails he'd sent to lawyers and had purposely not shown up to court.

As MacAskill hadn't shown up, the Sandher family argued that an arrest warrant should be issued so MacAskill could answer to contempt of court, and the Justice agreed.

Finding MacAskill may be a little harder, as the elusive blogger was found to be living in a homeless camp in Burnaby when a Vancouver financier he was targeting sent a private investigator to track him down.

In 2022, the financier, Ralph van der Walle, was awarded $190,000 in damages from MacAskill, with the judge in the case calling the blogger's behaviour “manipulative, harmful, and socially destructive.”

MacAskill didn’t pay and went to prison for 15 days after being found in contempt of court.

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Over the years, others have paid him off to leave them alone – one company gave him about $10,000.

In the current case, while in the courthouse, MacAskill swore at the Sandhers’ family lawyer, made a rude gesture with his finger, and pushed him in the shoulder. He refused to accept the paperwork the lawyer was trying to give him.

In his defence, MacAskill argued the defamation suit against him should be tossed out and submits what he calls “evidence.”

MacAskill submitted a “police report” with information about a 2018 investigation called “Operation Valley Cloak.”

However, the court found the police report was fabricated and made to look genuine.

The decision said the rest of MacAskill’s evidence was “inadmissible hearsay, inadmissible opinion evidence, subjective descriptions, reactions, opinions regarding motive, speculation, argument, and irrelevant information.

“His claims are largely conclusory allegations unsupported by evidence,” Justice Gibb-Carsley said.

Ultimately, the Justice dismissed MacAskill’s argument and issued a warrant for his arrest.

The justice also noted that the Sandher’s family’s lawyers had faced personal attacks and vitriol from MacAskill but still remained professional.

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