Andrew Paul Offe represented himself in his ACT Supreme Court trial. Photo: Albert McKnight.
UPDATED, Thursday: A truck driver who drove at two police officers during vaccine mandate protests was influenced by the loud support from the surrounding protesters as well as his passenger and a YouTuber called Aussie Cossack, a judge has said.
Andrew Paul Offe, 40, was convicted and handed a $2000 fine on Thursday (11 September).
Justice David Mossop said Offe hadn’t appreciated the gravity of his conduct or how seriously it would be taken by police when he drove towards two officers during the Convoy to Canberra on 12 February 2022.
He said Offe had been met by Simeon Boikov, a right-wing pro-Russian YouTuber known as Aussie Cossack, who spoke to him and rode on the side of his truck when he drove up a ramp towards Parliament House.
Offe ignored police directions and drove towards two officers, who put their hands on his truck and slowly moved backwards while he edged forwards.
Other police soon broke the truck’s window and pepper sprayed Offe.
Justice Mossop said the offence was at the low end of seriousness and noted how Offe had a range of health issues such as dyslexia, learning difficulties, difficulties with information processing, anxiety and chronic fatigue.
The judge commended the actions of the two police officers, saying their conduct reflected well on police.
He also said if Offe’s truck was forfeited, that would be an unfortunate consequence of the proceedings.
WEDNESDAY: A truck driver has been found guilty of driving at police officers outside Parliament House during the large vaccine mandate protests that took place in the Territory more than three years ago.
The Convoy to Canberra drew thousands of people to the ACT in February 2022 to protest different topics, but many focused on their issues with COVID-19 vaccines and pandemic lockdowns at the time.
Andrew Paul Offe was arrested during the protests and went on to fight the allegations against him at an ACT Supreme Court jury trial that began last month and ran for two weeks before it ended.
The courtroom was filled with a large group of his supporters during the trial.
Jurors spent more than two days deliberating before returning to the courtroom on Wednesday (10 September) and finding him guilty on two counts of driving a motor vehicle near or at a police officer.
Justice David Mossop thanked the jurors for their efforts before dismissing them.
“This was a trial that was longer than most trials in this court,” he said.
Jurors heard that thousands of protesters gathered near Parliament House on 12 February 2022 for the Convoy to Canberra, leading to road closures and police being stationed along the protesters’ route.
They heard Offe’s truck was covered in graffiti, including “Freedom”, “No more mandates” and “No more”.
He slowly drove his truck among pedestrians past a sign, near the ramp from Commonwealth Avenue to Parliament Drive, near the front of Parliament House, that said the road was closed.
Police stopped him and told him he had to turn right at the end of the intersection.
But he turned left and drove towards two officers, forcing them back along the road, until other officers smashed the truck’s window, used capsicum spray on him and arrested him.
Another officer said a YouTube content creator named Aussie Cossack had been “hanging off the side of the truck, encouraging things”.
“My position is that I was in a police escorted and police supervised and approved convoy where the police had closed off the road for an arranged rally, of which I was the most-rear vehicle,” Offe, who represented himself, said when the trial began.
“During this event, I became separated from the other vehicles in the convoy due to the large number of protesters and my care and caution to ensure nobody was harmed or injured.”
After the verdicts were delivered, prosecutor Morgan Howe said all transfer charges against Offe, which related to less serious alleged conduct during his offending, would be dropped. Also, he would not ask for any kind of jail sentence, partly as the court process itself had been a significant form of punishment.
Mr Howe said for reasons that included Offe’s health, he was susceptible to being influenced by others, such as by Aussie Cossack and the crowd at the protest.
Offe said he was on a disability pension and outlined the health issues he faces.
“I never intended to harm or damage anyone or anything,” he said.
“I get quite stressed out when driving.”
He was concerned his sentence could result in him losing the volunteering roles he performed, as well as losing his chauffeuring licence.
Offe said he had never received any other traffic infringement and asked for a non-conviction.
Justice Mossop said he would hand down his sentence on Thursday (11 September).
Well let's call the elephant out in the room right now - it is now very costly to do anything in… View