RCMP allowed to hold seized materials from police HQ probe for another year

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This article was published 27/11/2015 (3070 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There’s no imminent end to the investigation of Winnipeg’s police headquarters, as the RCMP have been granted permission to hold, for another year, materials they seized from Caspian Construction.

In December 2014, the Mounties raided Caspian’s McGillivray Boulevard offices and removed materials belonging to the company, which served as the lead contractor on Winnipeg’s $214-million police-HQ project.

That project has suffered from years of delays, $79 million worth of cost increases and was also the subject of two scathing external audits. An audit of municipal real-estate transactions found the city purchased the former Canada Post complex on Graham Avenue without appraising it or considering other options. A separate audit of the police-HQ project found unqualified officials severely mismanaged the conversion of the complex into the new home of the Winnipeg Police Service. This audit also raised questions about the way the final construction contract was awarded.

The RCMP investigation came after a whistleblower sent a letter to Manitoba Justice in July 2014, alleging doctored police-HQ invoices and a payment to a member of city council. The province forwarded that letter, as well as the audits, to the Mounties one month later.

The RCMP executed a search warrant at Caspian’s office Dec. 17 and announced they were engaged in a criminal investigation of the project.

Over three days, the Mounties removed “46 banker’s boxes, four filing cabinets and contents, documents, computer data, photos, video and other items” from Caspian’s office, according to court documents.

Thursday, the Mounties were awarded the right to retain possession of these materials until Dec. 14, 2016, nearly two years after the execution of the original search warrant. Caspian did not contest the application.

Robert Cyrenne, communications director for RCMP “D” Division in Winnipeg, said in a statement he could not provide information about the extension because “the investigation is ongoing.”

Caspian president Armik Babakhanians and his legal counsel did not respond to requests for comment.

It is not clear what the RCMP is investigating. In August, Manitoba judge Dale Schille ruled the contents of the December 2014 search warrant will remain sealed until February because in the meantime, the information contained within the warrant could jeopardize an extensive investigation.

A partly redacted warrant released to CBC Manitoba listed reasonable grounds for three offences that may have been committed, but did not state what those offences were.

The warrant also repeats information contained in the whistleblower’s letter, which stated two witnesses originally approached the Winnipeg Police Service with information — but only one was interviewed by police.

It is unknown why the Winnipeg Police Service did not interview the second witness. In December, police Chief Devon Clunis said the service acted upon information that came forward but declined to say what that action involved.

Clunis said the Winnipeg Police Service did not contact the RCMP because it saw no reason to do so. The chief said he was “fully confident” Winnipeg’s police were capable of investigating allegations pertaining to the Winnipeg police headquarters without experiencing conflict of interest.

bartley.kives@freepress.mb.ca