Medicine Hat business posts fictional story about ICE agents in southern Alberta city

The Medicine Hat Police Service (MHPS) says there will be no charges against a business owner who posted a fictional story about ICE agents in the Alberta community.

The MHPS announced Thursday afternoon that it was made aware of the post made by a business that referenced several locations in the city, including a local school.

Following an investigation, police said they spoke with the business owner and found the nature of the post was “not based on any actual incident” in Medicine Hat.

“There is no threat to public safety related to this post,” police said.

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Though police did not say what business was involved, reports indicate the post was made by McBride’s Bakery on Wednesday evening.

The account, which reads more like the script of a post-apocalyptic thriller, tells of enforcement agents, referred to as ICE, descending on Medicine Hat’s Crestwood School.

The agents in the story are there for immigrant students and the other characters – teachers, parents and other staff – oppose their actions.

The resistance leads to violence at the school and surrounding community, including several fatalities.

No charges against business owner

Medicine Hat police say there will be no charges of any kind against the business owner who made the post.

“It’s a story. It’s fiction. There’s nothing against the law there. Hollywood does it everyday,” said Insp. Jason Graham with the Medicine Hat Police Service.

Graham says they received about six calls for service to Crestwood School for public safety concerns on Thursday afternoon, but they were all resolved.

He adds that anyone who read the full account would understand its meaning and know that it isn’t true.

“I encourage people to read the whole thing. It’s easy to skim but reading it through might put people’s minds at ease,” Graham said.

In its statement, made jointly with staff at Medicine Hat’s Crestwood STEM School, police said it recognizes messages like these can cause concern for families, students, staff and community members.

“We encourage everyone to verify information through official and reliable sources before sharing it further,” officials said.

“If you ever have concerns about safety, please contact us directly by calling our non-emergency: 403-529-8481 or 911 in an emergency.”

CTV News has reached out to McBride’s Bakery via email and over the phone for comment on this story but have not heard back.