Last Updated on May 16, 2021
Artur Pawlowski, the Polish immigrant to Canada who was recently arrested for holding church services despite orders from the government to cease religious worship due to unscientific COVID-19 lockdowns and went viral after throwing out police and health officials while calling them Nazis and gestapos, says someone tried to burn down his home in a Facebook post containing video of the blaze.
“Someone tried to burn my house down! Price of fighting for Freedom,” wrote Pawlowski. “Please, pray for our enemies!” Pawlowski uploaded video showing at least five firefighters outside what appears to be a residence. Smoke billows in the background, lit by the lights from emergency response vehicles. The fire appears to have been started at a shed outside Pawlowski’s house, and fire fighters are seen removing wood to better access the flame. Multiple police officers are seen in the video, including one who huddled with fire fighters before taking photos of the damage. When police asked for a statement, a woman – ostensibly Pawlowski’s wife – is heard telling the police officer that she discovered the fire when her neighbor alerted her. “Half an hour ago my neighbor was putting the garbage, nobody was here,” the woman told police.
Pawlowski first catapulted to the international stage when he forced police to leave his church during Easter services earlier this year, repeatedly telling them to leave in a polite tone before raising his voice and referring to them as gestapo and Nazis. The police later defended their decision to visit Pawlowski’s church during Easter services, claiming that Pawlowski was violating the COVID-19 lockdown. Later, a police SWAT team raided the church during its services, serving him with notice that he was not to hold religious services, and could be arrested at any time if he continued to.
Undeterred, Pawlowski continued holding church services, and was recently arrested by police after church as he drove home. Calgary Police forced him to exit his vehicle and physically dragged him away from the scene.
National File recently spoke to Pawlowski, who explained that his family’s decision to flee Communist Poland was inspired by promises that Canada would respect their religious beliefs. “Canada offered us a new start, a brand new country where, the irony, they told us that our rights would be respected.” He added that he was promised, “No one would be hunting us down for our faith, and here I am defending my rights, simply for believing in church, believing in God, and opening my doors to the parishioners who want to, you know, worship God in peace.”
