MOUNTIE FAKED MEMO

Drug Case Tossed

A stunning admission by a senior RCMP officer that he drafted a bogus
memo to cover up concerns about police wiretap methods has led to the
collapse of a major drug prosecution in northern Ontario and raised
questions about wiretapping in at least 30 investigations.

Federal prosecutors in Sault Ste. Marie stayed trafficking charges
this week in Project Omax, a long-running investigation that
allegedly uncovered a "multi-kilo" cocaine ring linked to the Hells
Angels in Quebec.

The decision to stay the charges comes after testimony revealed a
fabricated memo about wiretapping concerns by RCMP Sergeant John
Roskam, a long-time member of the force who was head of the wiretap
unit in Ontario.

Sgt. Roskam, who insisted he acted on his own, revealed under
cross-examination last November that there was both a fake memo and a
real memo in responding to lawyers' concerns about wiretaps and
whether the force was not complying with court orders.

"I was flabbergasted that a senior police officer would fabricate
disclosure in a criminal matter," said Michael Lacy, the defence
lawyer who discovered the existence of the real and fake memos last
fall when he asked provincial prosecutors in an unrelated case for
documents related to RCMP wiretap procedures.

"The RCMP deceived the Crown as well," said the defence lawyer, who
called for an outside police force to begin a criminal investigation.

The fabricated document was turned over to Mr. Lacy in the spring of
2009 in Project Omax, when he asked for disclosure of internal memos
that discussed if the RCMP was "live monitoring" intercepted phone
calls, as required by court orders.

Live monitoring means that if a phone line is wiretapped, an RCMP
employee is supposed to be listening to the calls. If someone on the
line is not a "named target," then the monitor must hang up.

An earlier internal RCMP memo confirmed that court orders were not
being followed properly.

The internal memo issued in April 2008 by RCMP Sergeant Gabriel
DiVito, a supervisor of the "Special I" unit in Ontario, noted that
"on occasion" monitors were "not adhering to the legal requirements"
of the court orders.

"I cannot guess how the present case before the courts will unfold
and what the consequences of our actions will be," wrote Sgt. DiVito,
who urged RCMP staff to comply with the court orders.

It was later revealed in court that the RCMP had concerns about the
actions of its wiretap monitors in 30 projects involving the force.

Sgt. DiVito moved on to another position and was succeeded by Sgt.
Roskam, who was in charge of supervising all RCMP "wire rooms" in Ontario.

The fabricated memo turned over by Sgt. Roskam -- which was presented
as evidence -- did not include the concerns expressed in the real memo.

"You knew when you were creating this document that you were
committing what you believed to be a criminal offence, right," asked
defence lawyer Mr. Lacy.

"Hmm, hmm," responded Sgt. Roskam, who then answered "yes" when
pressed on whether his actions may have violated the law. The senior
officer described it as "bad judgment" to produce the fake memo.

Sgt. Roskam was still in charge of the wiretap unit when he testified
in court last fall and also a part of the RCMP security operations at
the Vancouver Olympics, court documents state.

RCMP spokesman Sergeant Marc LaPorte said yesterday only that Sgt.
Roskam is facing an internal "code of conduct" investigation.

The Crown "reached the conclusion there was no longer a reasonable
prospect of conviction, based on the evidence available," said Dan
Brien, a spokesman for the Public Prosecution Service of Canada. The
federal Crown spokesman stated that it is believed the fake memo was
produced in only the Sault Ste. Marie case.

RCMP WIRETAP MEMOS: REAL VS. BOGUS

An April 30, 2008 internal memo sent by RCMP Sergeant Gabriel DiVito
expressed concern about whether the "wire rooms" in Ontario were
complying with the terms of court orders allowing the RCMP to
intercept phone calls in several investigations. The following
sentences are some of those that did not appear in a "fake" version,
right letter, of the memo created and released in response to a
request by the defendants in Project Omax for disclosure of any
internal memos about wiretap procedures by the RCMP in Ontario.

WHAT WAS LEFT OUT

"It has come to my attention that on occasion our monitors have not
been adhering to the legal requirements of this clause. I am of the
opinion that we have to exercise our due diligence and ensure we
intercept communications in accordance to the Judicial Orders.

I cannot guess how the present case before the courts will unfold and
what the consequences of our actions will be, if any. During our
briefings with investigators, we have to present to them the
restrictions ... and the impact on their investigations. With this in
mind, we can collectively come up with a plan to address this issue.
I do not believe we have the flexibility to do this any other way but
to adhere to the Judicial Order."

Q Did you take an oath as a non-commissioned officer, an RCMP officer?

A Yes

Q Does the oath include an oath to uphold the laws of Canada?

A Yes

Q You knew when you were creating this document that you were
committing what you believed to be a criminal offence, right?

A Hmm hmm.

Q Right?

A Yes

Q But you did it anyway, right? You did it anyway?

A Yes, yes we created the document.