Harford went to North Vancouver Court in person on Nov. 20 to have the warrant of arrest quashed. He is currently awaiting a hearing on his payment in January.
Updated on November 20th at 4:30 p.m..: On the morning of November 20, Squamish Mayor Armand Harford voluntarily appeared in North Vancouver Provincial Court to have the small claims arrest warrant issued against him quashed. He has been ordered to appear for a pay hearing on January 17, 2024, according to Online Court Services.
More to come…
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Squamish Mayor Armand Harford failed to attend a small claims court payment hearing between former business owners Republic Bicycles and Trek Bicycles Canada in North Vancouver on Tuesday, Nov. 14. A civil arrest warrant was issued.
According to court documents on Nov. 14, Magistrate Judge Carmela Osborn signed a warrant for Harford’s arrest after he failed to appear at a hearing. According to the Small Claims Rules, Mr. Harford will likely be served with a notice of arrest, after which he will have the option of voluntarily contacting the Registrar to attend a future court appearance and thereby have his warrant revoked. will be given.
Regarding the hearing on Tuesday, Nov. 14, Harford told the Squamish Chief in an email: Over the last year, we have been downsizing the company. Efforts are underway to resolve outstanding issues. It would not be appropriate to comment further on this at this time. ”
The payment hearing was scheduled for 10:45 a.m., with several other hearings scheduled at that time. Mr Harford could then be seen in the council chambers around 12:30pm near the start of the committee of the whole council meeting that day.
The payment hearing and warrant requires Harford & Republic Bicycles to pay Trek approximately $26,700 for 10 invoices from September 2021 to July 2022. This follows an earlier court order dated July 25. The original billing notice from Trek said the bill was for “various bicycles and bicycle parts.”
Neither Harford nor his legal representative nor Republic Bicycles attended the July 2023 default order hearing. At the time, Trek’s legal representative said he had not heard from Harford or his representatives since the notice was served on Harford at City Hall in late June 2023. That’s why they wanted the default order.
What’s next?
Squamish RCMP calls Squamish Chief small claims rules When asked about the warrant process.
As noted above, the Small Claims Rules provide that Mr. Harford will be served with a notice of arrest, and that Mr. Harford may voluntarily contact the Registrar and appear in court at a later date; The warrant will be revoked.
However, if the person does not voluntarily attend, he or she may be escorted to court by a sheriff or deputy.
In an email to the chief, the Squamish district wrote that inquiries regarding pay hearings and warrants “are personal and not related to district business” and can be directed to Harford.
Republic Bicycles was located on Government Road in Brackendale. No new businesses have moved to that location since then.