An Ottawa graphic designer who used his skills to create recruitment videos and hateful propaganda for a neo-Nazi terrorist group has been sentenced to ten years in prison. On September 8, 2025, Justice Robert J. Smith of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice handed down the sentence to 28-year-old Patrick Gordon MacDonald, who was found guilty on three separate terrorism-related counts for his work with the Atom Waffen Division, also known as AWD1.
MacDonald was convicted of participating in the activity of a terrorist group, facilitating a terrorist activity, and wilfully promoting hatred. The sentence was reduced to nine years and nine months to account for pre-sentence custody. The case sheds light on the modern methods of recruitment and radicalization employed by violent extremist organizations, and the severe legal consequences for those who assist them.
The court heard that between 2018 and 2019, when MacDonald was in his early twenties, he played a key role in producing propaganda for AWD. The group, which was officially designated as a terrorist entity by the Canadian government in February 2021, subscribes to a violent “Accelerationist” ideology. This belief system, promoted by American neo-Nazi James Mason, encourages followers to commit lone-wolf terror attacks against minority groups, including Jewish, Black, and Muslim people, with the ultimate goal of inciting a race war that would lead to the creation of a white ethno-state.
MacDonald’s contributions were significant and multifaceted. He participated in the creation of three propaganda and recruitment videos titled “Fission”, “Feurnacht”, and “Grey Zone”. These videos, filmed at desolate locations including an abandoned cement plant in Belleville, Ontario, and a former school in St. Ferdinand, Québec, featured masked individuals in combat gear brandishing automatic weapons amid burning fires. The court found that MacDonald was one of the masked figures in the “Fission” video. He also used his personal camera and lenses, along with his graphic design expertise, to produce the videos.
Beyond the videos, MacDonald operated online under the alias “Dark Foreigner,” creating a prolific and influential body of graphic art that glorified Nazism and violence. This work was shared on extremist channels on the social media platform Telegram, specifically within the “Terrorgram Collective,” an online network designated as a terrorist group in 2024. MacDonald’s art was posted on a channel called “Terror Wave Refined” with the intent of recruiting new members to AWD and encouraging violent attacks.
Expert testimony from a Mr. Kriner detailed the impact of MacDonald’s work. Kriner explained that “Dark Foreigner” developed a recognizable brand within the violent extremist subculture, using a stark red, black, and white colour palette and symbols like skull masks, which became associated with AWD. One notorious image featured a skull-masked figure pointing a gun at the viewer with the text, “do not come between the Nazi and his prey.” His designs, which glorified Adolf Hitler and modern terrorists like Dylann Roof, who murdered Black churchgoers in South Carolina, were celebrated within the community and promoted cohesion among group members. MacDonald’s influence was such that he was commissioned to design the front and back covers for the fourth edition of James Mason’s foundational Accelerationist text, “Siege.” Kriner testified that MacDonald’s content helped radicalize young people and that his violent art continues to circulate online, prolonging the harm he caused.
During the sentencing hearing, MacDonald’s defence counsel argued that two of the charges, participating in and facilitating a terrorist activity, were based on the same set of actions and that he should only be convicted on one, based on a legal principle from the case R. v. Kienapple. This principle prevents multiple convictions for a single criminal act. The Crown argued that while the facts overlapped, the two offences were legally distinct. Section 83.18 of the Criminal Code, the participation offence, aims to stop individuals from enhancing a terrorist group’s abilities. Section 83.19, the facilitation offence, is designed to prevent acts that help a terrorist activity to be carried out. Justice Smith agreed with the Crown, citing precedents like R. v. Ahmed, and ruled that the two offences protect different societal interests. He found there was not a sufficient legal nexus to merge the convictions, so MacDonald was sentenced for both.
The court was presented with a detailed picture of MacDonald’s personal circumstances. He was born in 1997 and began creating extremist art at age 15. He lived in his parents’ basement his entire life until his arrest. His parents told a pre-sentence report author that they did not raise their children with racist views. After completing high school, MacDonald took graphic design courses at Algonquin College but did not graduate. He had a very limited work history and, according to the report, now plans to become an electrician. He has no prior criminal record.
A victim impact statement was filed by B’nai Brith Canada, a Jewish human rights organization. The statement conveyed that MacDonald’s antisemitic work contributed to an atmosphere of fear, making Jewish Canadians feel unsafe in their own communities and representing an affront to Canadian values.
In arguing for a sentence of six to eight years, the defence pointed to several mitigating factors. They noted MacDonald’s youth at the time of the offences, his lack of a criminal record, and his supportive family. They also emphasized that he had expressed remorse, renounced his neo-Nazi beliefs, and had been attending counselling with a group called Project Reset for two years. Furthermore, while on bail, MacDonald had volunteered with organizations that assist refugees from predominantly Black, Arab, and Muslim countries. His lawyers also highlighted that he had abided by strict bail conditions, including house arrest, for two years.
The Crown, which sought a total sentence of 14 years, focused on the severe aggravating factors. Terrorism offences, they argued, demand sentences that strongly denounce the conduct and deter others. The Crown noted that MacDonald’s actions were planned and deliberate over a long period, were motivated by hate, and explicitly encouraged the murder of identifiable groups.
Justice Smith, in his reasons for sentence, acknowledged the gravity of the crimes, stating, “the public must know and have confidence that the courts will treat terrorist activity with the deadly seriousness it deserves.” He considered several similar cases, distinguishing MacDonald’s actions from those involving bomb plots, which have drawn life sentences, but noting the clear danger posed by his propaganda. The final sentence was set at four years for participating in a terrorist group, four years for facilitating a terrorist activity, and two years for promoting hatred, with the terms to be served consecutively for a total of ten years.
In a notable part of the ruling, Justice Smith addressed MacDonald’s parole eligibility. Terrorism offences typically carry a stipulation that offenders must serve at least half of their sentence before being eligible for parole. However, the judge can waive this requirement if the offender demonstrates that it is not necessary for public protection. Based on MacDonald’s renunciation of his ideology, his remorse, his participation in counselling, and his volunteer work, Justice Smith found that MacDonald had met this burden. As a result, he will be eligible for parole under the normal rules, as determined by the Parole Board of Canada.
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