COPS' NOTEBOOKS SEIZED IN PROBE OF DRUG SQUAD

An RCMP-led team probing alleged corruption in the Toronto Police
drug squad has seized individual drug cop memo books going back seven
or eight years, sources say.

And it appears the secretive team is not only using the notebooks to
cross-reference evidence, but also to track down drug dealers who
were busted by the now-defunct drug units.

Former drug squad members have told The Sun that the investigative
team has confiscated memo books from scores of officers who have
served in drug squad units since the mid-1990s.

Legal sources say convicted drug dealers are being asked to recount
their cases.

The revelation has bolstered confidence among defence lawyers that a
comprehensive and unbiased probe is under way, one lawyer said on
condition of anonymity.

RCMP Staff-Supt. John Neily and his team of 20 to 30 hand-picked
detectives was formed in August after Toronto Police Chief Julian
Fantino sought RCMP assistance to broaden an internal probe into the
drug squad.

At least one man tracked down by the RCMP squad has alleged in an
affidavit and videotaped statements that drug squad officers stole
from him about six years ago.

Christopher Quigley alleged in the affidavit that after beating him
so badly that he needed hospital treatment, drug squad cops took
$54,000 from a safety deposit box, but only reported seizing $22,000.

Quigley, who pleaded guilty to marijuana possession and was fined
$1,100, also claims in the affidavit a 7-carat sapphire and a $2,500
pair of alligator boots were also taken.

Quigley's claim, which has not been proven in court, is the latest in
a series of drug squad corruption accusations made in both the civil
and criminal courts. It was revealed in an application by Toronto
lawyer Edward Sapiano for wide-ranging disclosure of evidence
concerning alleged dishonesty, violence or narcotics on the part of
drug squad officers who arrested his client, Roman Paryniuk.

Paryniuk, 39, who faces numerous charges over a $153-million hash
shipment seized in Halifax in 1995 and a $3.9-million drug stash and
a mobile Ecstasy laboratory seized in 1999, alleges drug officers
"stole money" from him during searches.

To date, the Neily team has charged one drug squad officer. Robert
Kelly, 32, a detective with Northwest Field Command, faces narcotics
trafficking and other charges.

The Sun has located nine civil court lawsuits which name various drug
squad members alleged to be involved in either illegal acts or thefts
of cash and valuables.

All of the civil suits are being defended, and all of the allegations
have been denied.