Threats force Ottawa cafe owner to close business after name appears in hacked list of Freedom Convoy donors
Ottawa cafe owner was on list of convoy donors after fundraising site hacked
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Tammy Giuliani, owner of Stella Luna Gelato Café in Ottawa, Canada, was forced to shut down her business after an onslaught of threats was made because of her donation to the Ottawa trucker convoy protesting against coronavirus restrictions.
Giuliani donated $250 to the Freedom Convoy via fundraising platform GiveSendGo. After the site suffered a data breach, Giuliani's contribution was made public, and her restaurant began to receive phone calls threatening vandalism and violence.
"We got a call from the team saying, ‘We’re getting phone calls here,'" Giuliani told the Ottawa Citizen. "I said, ‘What’s going on?’ and they said, ‘They’re threatening to throw bricks through our window. They’re threatening to come and get us.’ We said, ‘Lock the door and we’ll find out what’s going on.'"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}OTTAWA FREEDOM CONVOY: NONPROFIT SETS UP FREE LEGAL HOTLINE TO ASSIST TRUCKERS
The Canadian trucker convoy has made headlines for weeks as the truckers protests against COVID-19 vaccine mandates in the capital of Ottawa. Truckers have parked in populated areas of Ottawa and are honking their horns incessantly.
A sign outside a restaurant in downtown Ottawa asks for proof of vaccination. (Fox News Digital/Lisa Bennatan)
Giuliani was enthusiastic in her support for the convoy, writing on the now-leaked GiveSendGo message, "Now I’m giving you $250 and taking food down to the truckers every day. Thank you for continuing to fight for Canadians across this country."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}However, Giuliani walked back her support in her interview with the Ottawa Citizen, saying that the convoy has morphed into something she no longer supports.
"When a group of people first decided they were going to travel across the country to spread this message of solidarity, it seemed like a beacon of hope for small businesses like us," Giuliani told the Citizen. "It’s no surprise that small businesses have been on the edge. Families are at risk of losing their livelihood. I’m a sucker for a grassroots cause."
"Never in our wildest dreams did we anticipate what has transpired over the past couple of weeks," she said. "None of us anticipated what it turned into and we certainly don’t condone it.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"In retrospect it was bad judgment, but does that mean that people have a right to threaten our staff? Does it mean people have the right to threaten to throw bricks though our window and to threaten my family? We made a mistake. Who could have anticipated it?"
Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrives to a news conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, Feb, 14, 2022.
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The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, a legal nonpartisan charity, announced the creation of "a network of defense lawyers to assist any Canadian truckers peacefully protesting for freedom from coronavirus restrictions and vaccine mandates."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Anyone who may be facing arrest, the confiscation of property or has criminal law related questions in relation to the Ottawa Freedom Convoy protest can speak to a lawyer at no charge," the Centre wrote in a statement to Fox News.