Justice David Gibson made his ruling from Kenora via video in a Thunder Bay courtroom on Thursday following a nine-day preliminary hearing that began in late June.
Marissa Hobbs, wife of Keith Hobbs, who is also facing charges of extortion and obstruction of justice, will stand trial as well.
Gibson also ruled that Mary Voss, who was charged with extortion, will stand trial for the charge.
Counsel for Keith and Marissa Hobbs, Brian Greenspan, said outside the Thunder Bay Courthouse that it is unusual for people to be discharged during a preliminary hearing and the judge's ruling was not unexpected.
"One has to remember the very low standard that is applied at a preliminary hearing," he said. "First of all, no credibility findings can be made, so the judge must assume that all the evidence before him is to be accepted."
Greenspan added that the preliminary hearing did establish that some witnesses were being untruthful and not credible during testimony.
"That was a useful exercise for us and that is why we had a preliminary hearing," he said. "I can say and I think it’s fair to assess the judge’s comments on the obstruction that the crown’s committal is by the skin of their teeth."
Despite going to trial, Greenspan said he and Keith and Marissa Hobbs remain confident in the outcome based on the evidence that will be presented.
"We believe that the preliminary hearing created a situation where a number of witnesses were found to be and will be found to be untrustworthy and not credible witnesses upon which we are confident an acquittal ultimately will be entered and Keith and Marissa Hobbs will be ultimately vindicated," he said.
Keith and Marissa Hobbs and Voss were charged by the Ontario Provincial Police in July 2017. The initial court indictment accuses them of using “threats, accusations or menace of disclosing criminal allegations to the police” against former Thunder Bay attorney Alexander Zaitzeff in an effort to force him to purchase a house for Voss to live.
Last April, Zaitzeff pleaded guilty to four offences, including one count of invitation to sexual touching, and was sentenced to 15 months probation after receiving credit for six months of pre-trial custody.
A trial date is expected to be determined next month.
