SaskatchewanRomana Didulo and one of her followers have their first court appearances on Friday morning.Romana Didulo charged with failure to comply with an undertaking, intimidation of a justice participantAlexander Quon · CBC News · Posted: Sep 05, 2025 12:30 PM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hour agoCult leader Romana Didulo has been known to spread various conspiracy theories across the country and through social media. She set up a base in a decommissioned school in Richmound, Sask. two years ago. (CBC News)Romana Didulo, the so-called “Queen of Canada,” has arrived for her first court appearance at Swift Current Provincial Court Friday morning. She entered the building at about 10:30 a.m. CST.The cult leader was one of the 16 people who were arrested by the RCMP after a raid at a compound in Richmound, Sask. on Wednesday. All 16 people were initially released without charges but police quickly re-arrested Didulo, who calls herself the ‘Queen of Canada’, and Ricky Manz, who owns the compound in the village located 365 kilometres west of Regina.The pair violated a condition that they were not supposed to contact each other. Along with the charge related to that, Didulo is facing one charge of intimidation of a justice participant.RCMP have said Manz is facing the same charges as Didulo with the intimidation of a justice participant charge being related to a investigation in Richmound in July. Manz was remanded into custody. Didulo was not. Both are set to appear in Swift Current Provincial Court this morning.At least three other people are expected to be charged, according to RCMP.WATCH| ‘Queen of Canada’ cult leader arrestedFront Burner‘Queen of Canada’ cult leader arrestedOn Wednesday, 16 people — including Romana Didulo, the cult leader known as the “Queen of Canada” — were arrested in the tiny Saskatchewan village of Richmound. RCMP released them the following day, but then re-arrested two unidentified individuals. Didulo and her followers have been holed up in a decommissioned school there for two years. Their presence has been a source of ire for many locals, and ratcheted up divisions between the townspeople. Today: What happens when a cult comes to town — especially in a time of such intense societal polarization? Our guest is Rachel Browne, an investigative journalist and documentary maker who is currently working on a podcast for CBC about the impact that the “Queen of Canada” has had on this tiny village. For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts [https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcripts]Details on those charges were not available as the court information had yet to be signed as of Thursday evening. Since the cult set up base in Richmound — a village of about 120 people — there have been a number of complaints from locals, who accuse the group of harassing people and plotting to take over the town.Romana Didulo, the self-declared “Queen of Canada” is shown in this photo from taken in Ottawa on February 3, 2022. (REUTERS/Patrick Doyle)Didulo has spread various conspiracy theories through social media and, in October 2023, her group sent a Richmound administrator four “cease and desist” emails, which threatened village officials with “publicly broadcast execution.”Police say they raided the cult’s compound this week after receiving a report in August that one of its occupants had a firearm. Officers seized 13 imitation semi-automatic handguns, ammunition and a large number of electronic devices.ABOUT THE AUTHORAlexander Quon has been a reporter with CBC Saskatchewan since 2021 and is happy to be back working in his hometown of Regina after half a decade in Atlantic Canada. He has previously worked with the CBC News investigative unit in Nova Scotia and Global News in Halifax. Alexander specializes in municipal political coverage and data-reporting. He can be reached at: alexander.quon@cbc.ca.FacebookTwitter
‘Queen of Canada’ appears in Sask. court
