Third arrest made in connection with B.C ostrich farm
Third arrest made in connection with B.C ostrich farm
A tense standoff continues at a British Columbia ostrich farm in the midst of a legal battle over a government-ordered mass cull of the birds, with a Supreme Court decision still weeks away and another arrest made on site.
On Friday, Oct. 17, social media personality Jim Kerr was arrested after allegedly crossing a quarantine line at Universal Ostrich Farm in Edgewood, B.C., which remains under a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) search warrant.
RCMP say Kerr was taken into custody under the Health of Animals Act for obstructing federal agents. Kerr identified himself in social media posts.
He was later released on the condition he does not return to the property.
The arrest marks the latest development in the months-long standoff between the farm’s owners and the CFIA.
The agency ordered a mass cull of the farm’s ostriches in December 2024 following an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1) that went on to kill 69 birds.
Tests confirmed the virus in two deceased ostriches.
The farm’s owners Karen Espersen and her daughter, Katie Pasitney, have been fighting the cull and raising awareness in the hot topic, arguing the remaining birds show no signs of illness and should be individually tested rather than destroyed.
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