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A municipal councilor in Clarington, Ont., faces criminal charges for alleged threats made in a voicemail involving a potential mayoral candidate, police say.
Count. Corinna Traill has previously denied making threats, saying the voicemail in question was generated using artificial intelligence.
In a news release issued Wednesday, Peterborough police said the Ward 3 councilor had been arrested and charged with two counts of uttering threats.
Traill was released on a promise to appear and is scheduled to appear in court again in January.
In a social media post from September, Former mayoral candidate and retired police officer Tom Dingwall alleged that in August he received a voicemail from Traill telling him to stay out of next year’s mayoral race to allow a friend of his to “run unhindered.”
Dingwall went on to say that the message “made it clear” that if he didn’t do it, he would be killed and his wife would be sexually assaulted.
The charges were a “relief,” Dingwall told CBC News on Wednesday.
“It has impacted our family and my wife and it is a completely strange situation,” he said. “I certainly didn’t expect it, but I’m not going to tolerate it either.”
Dingwall said he is requesting that Traill resign from the council.
“To be clear, no elected official, paid to represent us, should use intimidation or threats to dissuade anyone from running for elected office or engaging in public service, especially for the benefit of their friend,” he wrote on social media.
Traill declined to comment to CBC News, saying the issue is being resolved in court.
But the councilwoman already issued her own statement about the situation in September, stating “unequivocally” that she did not leave the message.
“I have been informed that this is artificial intelligence technology,” he wrote. “Some parts of the voice message were my voice, but other parts were artificially generated.”
Traill went on to say that he respects the investigation process and plans to cooperate fully so that what happened can be established.
“It is important that residents have confidence in the outcome and I share the community’s desire for clarity and truth,” he wrote.
In a statement issued Wednesday, Clarington Mayor Adrian Foster noted the arrest and said it is important to allow the justice system to determine the outcome of the case.
“I want to reassure residents that Clarington Council is focused on serving our community and we will continue to do so,” he said. “As this is an ongoing matter before the courts, the City of Clarington cannot comment further at this time.”
