Chris Barber arrives at the courthouse in Ottawa for sentencing in his trial with fellow Freedom Convoy organizer Tamara Lich on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

By Canadian Press

Convoy leaders Lich, Barber given conditional sentences

Oct 7, 2025 | 1:41 PM

“Freedom Convoy” leaders Tamara Lich and Chris Barber will receive conditional sentences after being convicted of mischief for their roles in the protest that blockaded downtown Ottawa for several weeks.

Justice Heather Perkins-McVey handed down the sentences in an Ottawa courtroom this afternoon.

Lich and Barber were found guilty of mischief in April, while Barber was also found guilty of an additional offence of counselling others to disobey a court order.

McVey sentenced Barber to 12 months of house arrest and another six months abiding by a strict curfew, while details of Lich’s sentence will be release later today.

Lich and Barber were leaders of the protest that drew thousands of people and hundreds of trucks to downtown Ottawa in early 2022 in an effort to get all COVID-19 public health measures lifted.

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The protest led to the federal government using the Emergencies Act for the first time on Feb. 14, and a multi-day police operation was launched days later to clear Ottawa’s core.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Oct. 7, 2025.