Former City of Ottawa lawyer pleads guilty to Holocaust monument vandalism
Iain Aspenlieder is to be sentenced in the fall.
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The Ottawa man responsible for vandalizing the National Holocaust Monument pleaded guilty on Friday.
On June 9, Ottawa residents woke up to news that the memorial at 1918 Chaudière Crossing had been defaced with the words “FEED ME” scrawled in large block letters with red paint.
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Iain Aspenlieder, 46, was arrested on June 27 and charged with mischief to a war monument, mischief exceeding $5,000 and harassment by threatening conduct.
According to court documents, there was “an acknowledgement of criminal responsibility” and GPS monitoring with strict house arrest proposed as a plan of Aspenlieder’s release on bail, pending sentencing.
Surveillance cameras caught Aspenlieder arriving at the monument on a bicycle at 2:59 a.m. on June 9, carrying red recyclable bags containing paint cans. The video showed him throwing paint cans at the monument and using a paint brush to put “FEED ME” on it before fleeing the scene at 3:08 a.m.
A red handprint was also left at the scene, which Aspenlieder later admitted was his.
The City of Ottawa confirmed that Aspenlieder was fired from a job as legal counsel as of June 29. According to the Ontario Sunshine List of public service salaries, Aspenlieder was paid $148,247 in 2024, plus $430 in benefits.
At the time of his arrest, Aspenlieder was wearing a shirt that had red paint on it. He told police he was wearing “incriminating evidence.” Also seized by police were a backpack, a Palestinian flag, a floral cap and running shoes, all with red paint on them.
Police also seized a bike with red paint all over the handles, plus booklets and magazines, including some titled “Why does Canada choose to be complicit in Israel Apartheid?” and “Five Principles for Dismantling Antisemitism.”
Aspenlieder told police he accepted responsibility for his actions, but refused to provide information about his beliefs, ideologies or the whereabouts of the paintbrush. He also denied having any mental health disorders.
During a June 28 bail hearing, the court learned that Aspenlieder was participating in a hunger strike and that he would only end his strike when Prime Minister Mark Carney acknowledged that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was a “war criminal” who was “complicit in genocide.”
Aspenlieder told the court that he had discussed his hunger strike with his family to prepare them in advance and that it wasn’t an “impulsive decision.”
“I thought about it a long time,” he said. “It wasn’t some sort of product or symptom of mental illness. It’s a product of a deeply found or held moral belief in what’s right,” he said.
Aspenlieder said he didn’t have any plan to continue activist activities beyond his hunger strike, which he had intended to end on June 8, but which continued until July 2, according to an agreed statement of facts filed in court.
Justice of the Peace Stephen Louis Dibblee said the painted message “FEED ME” lacked context and appeared to represent Aspenlieder’s pronouncement of his hunger strike as “he takes a radical means of voicing his position on the (Israel-Palestine) conflict.”
In a social-media post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Carney said Israel was violating international law by imposing blockades on desperately needed humanitarian aid reaching starving Palestinians. He accused the Israeli government of failing to prevent the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the Gaza Strip.
Aspenlieder’s lawyer Michael Spratt said his client pleaded guilty to one count of mischief for defacing the Holocaust memorial and had been released on bail. Spratt said a sentencing hearing was expected sometime in the fall, with the date still to be determined.
With files from The Canadian Press
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