P.E.I. man under terrorism peace bond after RCMP finds 3D-printed firearms

The RCMP has issued a terrorism peace bond for Daniel Desmond Crowder after officers found firearm components at a P.E.I. home. Maria Sarrouh reports.

A Prince Edward Island man is under a terrorism peace bond after the RCMP found 3D-printed firearms at his home in North Rustico.

The court order is used when police believe someone is likely to commit a terrorism offence, even if there are no reasonable grounds to believe one has already occurred. It was granted Aug. 18 after police began the process earlier this year.

In February, Queen’s District RCMP responded to information that 50-year-old Daniel Desmond Crowder was making threats online. He was arrested at his home, where police executed a search warrant and seized several weapons and 3D-printed firearm parts. He was released in July under strict conditions.

Crowder now faces eight charges, including uttering threats, as well as manufacturing and possessing prohibited weapons.

“The facts surrounding those charges are for the court to hear,” said Cpl. Gavin Moore, a media relations officer with the P.E.I. RCMP. “But what I can say is that, given some of the content of what Mr. Crowder spoke about online, there is not a specific target.”

Moore said the case is unusual for the province. It’s the first-time charges have been laid in P.E.I. related to the manufacturing of firearms, and only the second time in at least 15 years that a terrorism peace bond has been granted.

Crowder will appear in front of the province’s Supreme Court on Sept. 9. P.E.I. Provincial Crown prosecutor John Diamond is handling the case.

Terrorism peace bonds in Canada

Back in December, a minor in Newmarket, Ont., was placed under a terrorism peace bond after the RCMP feared they could commit a terrorist offence. Details in that case are protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

In June 2024, a Saskatchewan youth was also made subject to a terrorism peace bond following an investigation by the RCMP Federal Policing Northwest Region’s National Security Enforcement Section (NSES.)