File#: 2020-355420 PROVINCIAL COURT OF JUSTICE Newfoundland and Labrador Canada Information to Obtain a General Warrant Pursuant to Section 487.01 of the Criminal Code CRIMINAL CODE, FEDERAL AND PROVINCIAL STATUTESInformation to Obtain a General Warrant Pursuant to Section 487.01 of the Criminal Code ‘CANADA Province of Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Court of Newfoundland and Labrador at St. John's This is the information of Corporal Lesley Devereaux, a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, @ Peace Officer, the informant. ‘The informant says he has reasonable and probable grounds for believing that an offence has been committed, to wit: That Sheryl Gambin-Walsh and Paul Didham on or between June 1, 2018 and March 12, 2020 at or near St. John’s in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, did commit a Breach of ‘Trust to wit: leaking information fram government processes that are subject to Cabinet Confidence, contrary to section 122 of the Criminal Code. And that reasonable and probable grounds exist for believing that the said offence has been committed are as follows: Introduction of Affiant 1) 1, Corporal Lesley Devereaux, a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Serious/, Major Crimes Unit East in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, make oath and say as follows: 2) 1am a peace officer and have personal knowledge of the information in this Affidavit, except where otherwise stated.3) 4) 5) | have been a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) since February 2002. | am currently a Corporal with the RCMP Major Crimes Unit East (MCU), St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labradér and have been stationed there since November, 2017. In my current role, | am responsible for Major Cases that are considered high priority and in the public interest, for example homicide and corruption. | have worked within all roles of Major Cases using the Major Case Management Model (MCM). Prior to my current posting, | was stationed at the ‘Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit (CFSEU) for four years, this is a unit comprised of both members of the RCMP and members of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary (RNC), as a result | have corporate knowledge of the RNC. During my time there my primary role was the investigation of drug trafficking and organized crime, | worked within the MCM extensively working on wiretap investigations and major projects. These. investigations included physical surveillance of criminal groups, the use of confidential informants/ Agents and undercover operations as well as Part VI authorizations. | have attended training related to investigations including the Investigator Development Course, the Surveillance Course, the National Search Warrant Course, Source Handlers Course, the Interception of Private Communications Course, the Major Crime Investigative Techniques Course, the Witness Handling Workshop and the Team ‘Commanders Course. Throughout this affidavit, where | state my belief, the belief is based on my ‘experience as set out in this affidavit. | have drafted this affidavit in a pre — edited format to make it easier to read and understand and to protect any sensitive information. Persons and Offence Being Investigated 6) The subjects of this investigation are: 2) Pau! Dich ern NL;) A swom police officer and member of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary b) Sheryl Gambin - Wash |) Aswom member of cabinet of the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador The offence being investigated is: c) Breach of Trust by Public Officer contrary to Section 122 of the Criminal Code. Definitions and Abbreviations 7) Unless Othemise stated: a) All places referred to in this Affidavit are in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, : b) All the motor vehicle licence plate numbers referred to in this Affidavit are Newfoundland and Labrador motor vehicle licence plate numbers unless otherwise indicated, and will be abbreviatéd as "NL", 8) All references made to Cabinet in this Affidavit are related to the Provincial Government of Newfoundland and Labrador unless otherwise stated: a) Executive Counci- Executive Councit means the Executive Council of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, * b) Minister - means a member of the Executive Council; ©) Cabinet - Provincial Cabinets are known formally as executive councils and follow the federal model except in certain powers of appointment. d) House of Assembly- The House of Assembly is the focal point of the democratic process in our province. It is the elected body which approves legislation, and definition is taken fom the offical website onthe House of Assembly for NL, nupss//vw assembly ca/VisitLeam/HowheHOAWorks. aspx This definition is taken from theofficial website on the House of Assembly for NL,holds oversight of the government within provincial jurisdiction in accordance with the Constitution of Canada? e) Committee on Routine Matters and Appointrnents — (Routine Committee) The Cabinet Committee on Routine Matters and Appointments has the authority to make decisions on matters which require Cabinet authority, but which are relatively straightforward in nature (e.g., land approvals, promulgating regulations, minor housekeeping amendments), as well as some Government appointments to Boards, Agencies, and Commissions. in most cases, Minutes of Council are recorded from the committee meeting, and there is no further deliberation by full Cabinet. To ensure that all Cabinet members dre aware of committee decisions, and to provide opportunities for non-members to raise any concems, Minutes of Council and Orders in Council are distributed to all Cabinet members for consideration, and are not officially effective until seven days subsequent to the decision. Should the Committee on Routine Matters and Appointments feel it necessary, they may refer a matter to Cabinet.* 9) Statements of clarification and/or belief with regard fo information | have received from other investigators or other investigative means are places within the following type of square brackets [ J Databases Relied Upon 10)The Canadian Police Information Center (CPIC), is a computerized data base repository maintained by the RCMP in Ottawa, Ontario. It can be accessed through authorized restricted terminals and authorized personnel, and is usually accessible by police and law enforcement agencies throughout Canada. This repository records information such as missing and wanted persons, stolen property criminal record of individuals, and accesses records of motor vehicle branches of the various provinces across, Canada with regard to driver's license. information, names, birth dates, This definition is taken from the official website on the House of Assembly for NL, be “This definition is taken from the following website: https//www.exes.cov.nl.ca/exec/eabineVons. hil. This isthe ‘official website of the Government of NL and Labrador.descriptions, addresses, driving records and motor vehicles registered to a particular named individual, through vehicle license numbers. When reference is made to information obtained as a result of a CPIC inquiry | believe it to be accurate because the employees are Government employees and part of their duty is to correctly enter data. 11)The Motor Registration Division for Newfoundland and Labrador, (MRD) is a computerized data base repository maintained by the Motor Vehicle Branch of the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. It can be accessed through authorized and restricted terminals, by authorized personnel, and. is accessible to police agencies. This repository records information that is collected by the Motor Vehicle Branch of Newfoundland and Labrador in relation to information associated to information obtained as the result of an MRD inquiry, | believe that information to be accurate. 12)The Integrated Constabulary Automated Network, (ICAN) is a computerized database repository maintained by the RNC, St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. It can be accessed through authorized and restricted terminals, by authorized personnel, and is usually accessible by police agencies and in particular the RNC. This repository records information that is collected through the normal course of an investigation including names, addresses, vehicles, birth dates and the nature of the investigation by the investigating department or agency. When reference is made to information obtained as a result of an ICAN inquiry, ! believe that information to be accurate. 13)The Police Reporting and Occurrence System (PROS), is a computerized data base repository maintained by the RCMP in Ottawa, Ontario. It can be accessed through authorized and restricted terminals, by authorized personnel, and is accessible to members of the RCMP. This repository records information that is collected through the normal course of an investigation including names, addresses, vehicles, birth dates and the nature of the investigation by the investigating department or agency.When reference is made to information obtained as a result of a PROS inquiry, | believe that information to be accurate. Overview 14)On Wednesday, March 4, 2020, a confidential document, identifying the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary's (RNC) upcoming Commissioned Officer Promotions and Appointments was delivered to the Committee on Routine Matters and Appointments of Cabinet (Routine Committee). The names and rank of each officer being promoted were leaked to officers within the RNC, in addition to this, a lateral transfer was also included stating Deputy Chief Woodruff was going to be moved. This was how the Deputy Chief learned he was being transferred. This information was Circulating within the RNC before the Chief of Police, Joseph Boland had received the information officially 15)On March 12, 2020, RCMP received a letter of request for investigation from RNC Chief Joseph Boland alleging a Cabinet Minister who sits on the Routine Committee leaked the appointment paper to a member of the RNC who was a part of the promotional process, citing a belief that the leak was a breach of trust by a public official. 16)This information had been discussed and decided ypon by the Routine Committee on March 4, which is when the information appears to have been leaked within the RNC. The information discussed and decided upon was subject to cabinet confidence. The information discussed was only in the possession and contro! of those who were in attendance at that meeting, with the exception of management of the RNC and Department of Justice. 17)Chief Joseph Boland and Deputy Chief Paul Woodruff believe the information was leaked to Paul Didham from Minister Sheryl Gambin-Walsh because they are aware of a close personal relationship between them and know they communicate. They also believe Paul Didham took the information and distributed it within the RNC.Grounds for Belief 18)On March 11, 2020, RCMP received a letter of request for investigation from RNC Chief Joseph Boland (Chief Boland) alleging a Cabinet Minister who sits on the Routine Committee of Cabinet leaked the appointment paper to a member of the RNC who was a part of the promotional process, citing a belief that the leak was a breach of trust by a public official $ 19)! reviewed the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly Act and leamed the following:® a) Itis required to have 40 members of the House of Assembly (Section 4); b) Each District has one representative (Section 5); c) The House of Assembly and the members of the House of Assembly shall hold, enjoy and exercise those and similar privileges, immunities and powers that are now held, enjoyed and exercised by the House of Commons of the Parliament of Canada and by the members of that House of Commons. (Section 19) 20)On March 16, 2020, | reviewed the official website of Newfoundland and Labrador Government which describes the Cabinet Secretariat and Cabinet Operations. From the website | learned the Following.” How Cabinet Works a) A Cabinet Submission is the key instrument of written policy advice to Cabinet. Staff within Departments and Agencies prepare Cabinet Submissions (also referred to as Memorandum to Executive Council). 5 reviewed this letter on March 16, 2020, I reviewed this Act on March 30, 2020. 7 eared this fom reviwig the fllowing website: ninsi/wn exes gov.lcafaxe/eabnc/onsm). This is he official website of the Government of NL and Labrador.b) The Minister responsible approves the Submission and it is submitted to the Cabinet Secretariat. The signed Submission is circulated to all Cabinet Ministers. The Deputy Clerk of the Executive Council reviews the Submission for routing to one of the five Standing Committees of Cabinet. ¢) Following the preparation of an analysis of the Submission, a recommended course of action is presented to the Committee of Cabinet to which the Submission is routed by Cabinet Secretariat. The Committee prepares a recommendation for the consideration of Cabinet. d) Following Cabinet consideration, a Minute of Council and, where required, an Order in Council is prepared outlining the approved course of action for departmental or agency implementation. Committees of Cabinet ) There are five standing committees of Cabinet: Planning and Priorities Committee, Treasury Board, Social Policy Committee, Economic Policy Committee, Committee on Routine Matters and Appointments ) In addition to the standing committees, ad hoc committees may be convened as necessary to deal with specific issues. The formation and organization of ad hoc committees is the prerogative of the Premier. The Role of the Committee on Routine Matters and Appointments 9) The Cabinet Committee on Routine Matters and Appointments has the authority to make decisions on matters which require Cabinet authority, but which are relatively straightforward in nature (e.g., land approvals, promulgating regulations, minor housekeeping amendments), as well as some Government appointments to Boards, Agencies, and Commissions. In most cases, Minutes of Council are recorded from the committee meeting, and there is no further deliberation by fullCabinet. To ensure that all Cabinet members are aware of committee decisions, and to provide opportunities for non-members to raise any concems, Minutes of Council and Orders in Council are distributed to all Cabinet members for consideration, and are not officially effective until seven days subsequent to the decision. Should the Committee on Routine Matters and Appointments feel it necessary, they may refer a matter to Cabinet. 21)On March 17, 2020, | did a search of the Government of Canada website and learned the following in respect of Cabinet Confidence:® Cabinet Confidences a) In Canada, responsible ministerial government is based on the individual and collective responsibility of the members of Cabinet to Parliament. Cabinet is the political forum in which Ministers meet to.establish a consensus on the government's general directions and on broad governmental policies that each Minister must individually and publicly defend. b) Cabinet confidences are therefore, in the broadest sense, the political secrets of Ministers individually and collectively, the disclosure of which would make it very difficult for the government to speak in unison. before Parliament and the public. c) The requirement to protect the confidentiality of Cabinet proceedings is a comerstone of the Westminster system of govemment and is protected by convention, common law and legislative provisions. Furthermore, this principle has been'widely recognized by the courts. In its 2002 Babcock decision, the Supreme Court of Canada stated that an important reason for protecting Cabinet documents was to avoid the creation of illinformed public or political criticism. The Court further stated that: : i) If Cabinet members’ statements were subject to disclosure, Cabinet members might censor their words, consciously or unconsciously. They might shy away from stating unpopular positions, or from making comments that might be considered politically incorrect. *Teamed his fom viewing the website hupe/Iwor justice g.clengepples-scatip-aprplati-laifp Mm. 104) 9) li) The process of democratic governance works best when Cabinet members charged with government policy and decision-making are free to express themselves around the Cabinet table unreservedly. [1] The essence of the principle of Cabinet confidentiality is therefore to protect the collective decision-making of Ministers-Whereby Ministers discuss issues and arrive at decisions. In his recommendations presented to the Committee fast fall, the Information Commissioner proposed to create a mandatory exemption for Cabinet confidences. Heads of government institutions would decide what information in their institutions would fall within the definition of a Cabinet confidence, with a right of review of that information and of those decisions by the Information ‘Commissioner and the courts. Considerations: It is possible that the review of sensitive Cabinet confidence information by the Information Commissioner and the courts would expose and undermine the collective decision-making of Ministers and would run contrary to the principles of collective decision-making by Ministers and their accountability for those decisions to Parliament. Collective responsibility is the principle which underlies the solidarity of the Ministry. Disclosure of this information outside the accountability framework to Parliament could lead to the weakening of the ability of the Ministry to function collectively and for Ministers to be held accountable to Parliament. Itis for this reason that it may be wise. to maintain the exclusion for Cabinet confidences, which is consistent with the current Govermment’s commitment that it would subject the exclusion of Cabinet confidences to review by the Information Commissioner. Under the current law, the Information Commissioner has no legislative right to review the decisions of the Clerk of the Piivy Council as to what information constitutes a Cabinet confidence. An informal practice exists, however, by which the Information Commissioner investigates the decisions to withhold Cabinet confidences from disclosure. To this end, an option would be to legislate a certification and review process in the Access to Information Act that would closely 1parallel the Canada Evidence Act, whereby the certification of Cabinet confidences can only be challenged where the information for which the privilege was claimed does not on its face fall within the statutory definition of Cabinet confidences, or where it could be shown that the Clerk had improperly exercised the discretion conferred. This regime was upheld in 2002, by the Supreme Court of Canada in Babcock, and more recently in 2005 by the Federal Court of Appeal in the Vennat and Pelletier decisions. [2] h) A statutory amendment could be enacted to grant the Information Commissioner a limited right-of review of the issuance of certificates by the Clerk of the Privy Council, therefore ensuring the Information Commissioner's review of the Cabinet, confidence exclusion. [1] Babcock v. Canada (Attorney General), [2002] 3 S.C.R. 3, at para. 18, [ Babcock] [2] Canada (Privy Council) v. Pelletier, 2005 FCA 118. [As referred to in paragraph 19, the House of Assembly of NL is guided by the same principles as Parliament, therefore subject to the same Cabinet Confidences. As referred to above, cabinet confidence is the political secrets of Ministers individually and collectively, the disclosure of which would make it very difficult for the government to ‘speak in unison before Parliament and the put It is my understanding the purpose of “Cabinet Confidence” privilege is to protect from disclosure discussions and deliberations of federal Cabinet Ministers on matters that are, or have been, the subject of discussion at Cabinet meetings] 22)| conducted a Pros Query on Sherry Walsh and learned the following:® «) Sher i b) Sherry Gambin-Walsh, Liberal Minister for the District of Placentia ~ St. Mary's made a complaint to police. | reviewed a report written by K. Howell on May 1, ° 1 conducted this query on March 16, 2020.2019 at 11:56 a.m. The report stated Sherry Gambin-Walsh had held a campaign the night before in Branch. (Pros File 2019-594282 refers) ©) | am satisfied that Shery! Walsh iM Sherry Gambin- Walsh, Provincial Cabinet Minister are one and the same. 23) conducted an ICAN query on Paul Didham (Didham) and learned the following:"° the following:"* >. ot RR b) Her address is listed on her driver's licence as| c) Her current licence was generated [The fact that Shery! Welsh’s Ii e2ds me to believe the Information is accurate] 25)| conducted a query on Paul Didham a: MRD and leamed the following:'? a) Paul Didham fA nolds drivers licence number b) His address is listed on his driver's licence as| o) His current crivers icence was generat 26)On March 24, 2020, | met with Wendy Zdebiak, Counsel to the Chief of the RNC at RCMP Headquarters. She provided me the following documents: "© [ conducted this query on March 24, 2020. * | conducted this query on March 24, 2020, | eonducted this query on March 24, 2020. 8a) Handwritten notes of Chief Boland of the RNC; b) Handwritten notes of Deputy Chief Paul Woodruff (DC Woodruff); ©) Paul Didhams oath of office for when joined the’ RNC; 4d) Handwritten notes of Supt. Ed Oates (Supt. Oates); ) Email correspondence between Supt. Shawn O'Reilly (Supt. O'Reilly) and Chief Boland; ) Email Correspondence between A/insp. Paul Didnam and Supt.Oates; 9) Correspondence from the RNC to both SIRT and the Executive Council Clerk. [SIRT is an acronym for The Serious Incident Response Team of Newfoundland and Labrador (SIRT-NL) which Is a cvillan-led police oversight agency responsible for conducting independent investigations into serious incidents involving death, serious injury, sexual offence, domestic violence or any matter of significant public interest that may have arisen from the actions of a police officer in the province. itis independent body that only investigates police officers.] 27) | reviewed the handwritten notes of DC Woodruff and learned the following: a) On March 4, 2020, DC Woodruff attended the office of Insp. Paul Roche (Insp. Roche) in relation to a training issue. As DC Woodruff entered his office he Insp. Roche was just hanging up the phone and appeared visibly upset. DC Woodruff noted Roche was visibly pre-occupied, seemed tense and had his lips pursed, he seemed as if he was having trouble containing himself, was agitated and acting unusually pre-occupied. DC Woodruff asked him was something the matter and Insp.Roche replied "no" and said he couldn't speak or talk much because he was scared of what he might say. DC Woodruff described it as out of character and said “ok" and left. b) DC Woodruff went back to his office and saw a text message from Didham. He had texted DC Woodruff the day before to tell him a challenging file he had dealt with resulted in a guilty plea. DC Woodruff texted back and said “good work". Didham replied "Good work.... but | guess not good enough." Again, D/C Woodruff found this out of character but did not respond,# "3 reviewed these notes on March 24, 2020. DC Woodruff provided a copy of this text message through Wendy Zdebiak and I viewed it on March 24, 2020. 14©) Shortly after, Chief Boland walked into DC Woodrufs office and he told the Chief about the meeting with Paul Roache and Didhams text. 4) At the same time Ms. Simone Dyall was in the Executive Offices, she told them Didham had removed himself from the Managers and Executive Officers Mess Committee. e) It occurred to DC Woodruff as if Didham believed the Inspector position he was in the running for would not be coming to him, as it was unusual that he would send such a text. [Paul Didham was competing for a promotion to Inspector and was among of a group of candidates who were waiting for the results. The promotion process had initiated in April of 2019.) f) Management were aware the candidates promoted into the vacant positions would be coming out soon as the Government and Lieutenant Govemor had approved/appointed them. Further to.that, DC Woodruff clarified the: process by saying as commissions are recommended by the Chief of Police, they are forwarded directly to the Minister of Justice and Public Safety's Office, then from his understanding to Cabinet and then for Premiers approval and then on to the Lieutenant Governor for approval. 9) Chief Boland had not received the promotions ‘back, for Insp. Didham to find out before any confirmation was received by Chief Boland he could only have found out by someone at a very high level. h) DC Woodruff stated he was aware Didham had an extremely close personal relationship with Minister Gambin-Walsh. Didham has personally told him of the following interactions with her: i) . She offered him the Director of Motor Vehicles Position. He turned it down because he was in the A/Insp. Role and foresaw a long future with the RNC. ii) Didham told him on one occasion that when Minister Gambin-Walsh was, answering questions in the House of Assembly during question period, she texted him many times as she was being questioned and he provided her information related to policy matters. (1 reviewed the Members Parliamentary Guide there is a section within the guide that rafers to Electronic Devices and their use in the House of Assembly Chamber they are permitted, however, some restrictions are: 15Devices must not be used for consultation purposes while speaking in debate, or on any other occasion when a Member is in possession of the floor; Devices must not be used during Routine Proceedings, including laptops which must remain closed.] iii) On another occasion, after a managers meeting, they were having a celebration of birthday of a staff member in the executive office. Didham pulled him to the side and was very eager, looked happy and delighted to show DC Woodruff on his phone specifically a text from Minister Gambin-Walsh saying the Premier would be stepping down within the coming months or thereabouts. DC Woodruff was very surprised Didham would be texted this by the Minster and was taken aback Didham would even show him this, but Didham seemed very proud to do so. DC Woodruff stated to Didham “the Chief should know this" to which Didham responded he had already shown him. DC Woodruff estimated his occurred approximately a year and a half ago. i) DC Woodruff surmised Minister Gambin-Walsh told Didham he would not be getting promoted which explained his behavior. He had no other explanation as to how Didham would know. Further to this, he wondered if Didham had told Insp. Roche as he is personally aware Didham and Insp. Roche are close. Several months’ prior, Insp. Roche called him saying he had talked Paul Didham "off the ledge" adding he frequently does. Insp. Roche wanted to give DC Woodruff advance notic in case Didham called him and was upset as he did not get the CIC Course. (Critical incident Command Course). [CIC Course also known as the, Critical Incident Command Course is a high level training offered through the Canadian Police College on how to have command and contro! of critical incidents, for example hostage taking or barricaded person or other incidents where public safety is at risk] Didham did call him shortly after, he was agitated yet respectful, he upset he wasn't chosen to go on the CIC training. DC Woodruff stated he could hear the edge in his voice and Didham admitted he was very upset. DC Woodruff told him he did not have to explain anything in regards to his selection and Didham agreed. DC Woodruff told Didham he did not consider him for the course and selected Colin McNeil because of his TRU (Tactical Response Unit) background and he was an easy choice. DC Woodruff asked Didham how did he know that he wasn't considering him for the next CIC course to which Didham responded said perhaps 16it wasn't for him. DC Woodruff told him to think long and hard about that and to be careful what he asks for. DC Woodruff actually had selected Didham to go on the next CIC course but has since changed his mind as a result of the comments Didham made to him. (As referred to previously.) }) Later in the evening on March 4, 2020, Insp. Roche sent DC Woodruff a text message saying “sory about today but | just had a bad phone call and really couldn't talk” to which DC Woodruff simply responded “10-4”.15 k) On March 5, 2020, at 11:45 a.m. DC Woodruff was in Executive Office at RNC Headquarters, he told Chief Boland he had spoken with Supt. Oates, who was informed by Inspector Sharon Warren (Insp. Warren) who heard from Patrol NCO's she wasn't being promoted but that Supt. Oates was, along with Colin McNeil, Tom Warren and Andrew Warren. [This information was completely accurate and was exactly what had been submitted to the Government by the RNC.) 1) At 3:36 p.m. on March 5, 2020 DC Woodruff was back in his office, Supt. Oates told him and Chief Boland about the incident that moming, referring to when Insp. Warren told him of the promotions. She had learned about these from the Patrol NCO's. 28)! reviewed the handwritten notes of Chief Boland and feamed the following:'® a) On March 4, 2020, Chief Boland received a text message from Deputy Minister (D/M) of Justice, Jennifer Mercer (D/M Mercer) stating “Your appointment paper is on the agenda for meeting tonight.” i) At 4:50 p.m., Chief Boland was in DC Woodruffs office when he was informed of the text message DC Woodruff received from Paul Didham and the incident with Insp. Roche, li) At 5:00 p.m. Simone Dyall came into the office and told them Didham had withdrawn from the manager's fund. [The managers fund is a social fund that all commissioned officers and acting commissioned officers within the RNC pay into and itis deducted from their pay.) 'S DC Woodruff provided copies ofthese text messages which I received from Wendy Zdebiak and viewed on March 24, 2020. © [reviewed these notes on March 24, 2020, v7tii It appeared to Chief Boland and DC Woodruff, Didham and perhaps Roche were aware of the names that were put forward to the Goverment for promotion. Chief Boland wrote that he and DC Woodruff were aware of the close ties between Sherry Gambin-Walsh and Paul Didham. b) Didham had shown Chief Boland text messages in the past that he had received from the Minister, one involving the resignation of the Premier, another conceming a vacancy at MRD that she felt Didham would be a good fit for. ©) On'the moming of March 5, 2020, Chief Boland contacted D/M Mercer to express his concer regarding what he felt was the leaking of information to Didham. He inquired as to who would have been on the committee that saw the promotion documents, there was no answer. He-called Minister Bemard Davis, there was no answer. d) At08:40 a.m. He reached Minster Brian Warr, who told Chief Boland that he was not familiar with the promotional document and didn't see it. He said the document usually goes to either the Social Policy Committee or the Economic Policy Committee. He wasn't sure who was on this committee. ) At 08:42 a.m. he spoke with D/M Mercer who advised she would consider what he said but to sit on the information as they did not have any real evidence that Minister Gambin-Walsh leaked the information to Didham. f) DC Woodruff told Chief Boland about the conversation he had with Supt.Oates regarding Insp. Warren learning of the promations from the NCO Office. [NCO office Is referring to the Non-Commissioned Officer Rank office, where the Sergeants (Sgt’s) who ‘supervise patrol officers congregate and work from.] @) At 3:35 p.m. Supt. Oates and DC Woodruff met at Chief Boland’s request. Supt. Oates told him that he had been congratulated by one of the Sgt.'s earlier that moming on his promotion. Supt. Oates also told Chief Boland he had spoken with Didtiam who told him hé was going to maké a respectful workplace complaint. Didham had been instructed to advise his supervisor. ) It was at this point that Chief Boland began to piece things together. The information relayed to Supt. Oates was accurate, they had this information for 18months and no one knew about it, there no.leak, yet after it was sent to the committee, it was leaked. ii) Secondly, Chief Botand questioned why Didham was acting in such a manner, to remove himself suddenly from the Managers Social Fund and file a respectful workplace complaint unless he was absolutely certain that he was not being promoted. iil) Chief Boland stated the only people who knew who was on the promotion list were Chief Boland, DC Woodruff, Kim Harding, D/M Megan Nesbitt, D/M Mercer, the Minister of Justice and Public Safety, Andrew Parsons and the Cabinet Ministers who were part of the Routine Committee. iv) Chief Boland considered the promotional process had been in the works for months and the very evening the list was forwarded to the Routine Committee, the information was leaked. The Committee received the information before their meeting at 5:15 p.m. on March 4, 2020. v) Chief Boland believes the only Minister that Didham has a connection with is Minister Gambin-Walsh. vi) Chief Boland also feels the leaking of this information has caused severe and ieparable damage to the RNC and to the Provincial Government. vil) Supt. Oates also notified Chief Boland that Didham had contacted Supt. Oates to say that he would not be attending a meeting the following day, March 5, 2020 due to a family emergency. Chief Boland stated the family emergency appeared to be a visit to an Employee Assistance Representative regarding a respectful workplace complaint, vill)Chief Boland had also been informed by DC Woodruff that he had received a phone call the evening of March 4, 2020 apologizing for how he spoke earlier in the day and that he was angry due to a personal matter. ix) In addition to this, Supt. O'Reilly forwarded an email at 7:18 p.m. conceming a drug seizure that was mishandled by a patrol officer. This email seemed out of character for Supt. O'Reilly and given Chief Boland suspected that Supt. O'Reilly had heard that he was not being promoted. Chief Boland felt this was Supt. O'Reilly taking a shot at Supt. Oates. [Supt. Oates name had been leaked as 19being promoted to Deputy Chief which was the position Supt. O'Reilly was competing for] h) Chief Boland is aware of a close relationship between Supt. O'Reilly, Insp. Roche and Didham. [Given the behavior of all three officer, Chief Boland suspected they were all aware of the names forwarded for promotion] i) Supt. Oates had also informed Chief Boland that he had received a phone call from a retired Staff Sergeant, Mike Adams who had called to congratulate him on his promotion. The Officer would not provide Supt. Oates the name of the person who had given him the information. i) Chief Boland then notified the Minister of Justice and Public Safety, Andrew Parsons of his suspicion that Minister Gambin-Walsh had leaked information to Didham which he felt was a breach of section 122 CC, Breach of Trust by A Public Official. Chief Boland took several steps then to try and find who would be most appropriate agency to investigate this, including consulting the Director of the Serious Incident Response Team, Mike King: Given the information provided, Mike King determined this did not fall within his mandate. Chief Boland also forwarded a formal request to Elizabeth Day, clerk of the Executive Council. k) On March 8, 2020, Chief Boland spoke with Supt. Oates who stated he had received a call from Inspector Alex Brennan (Insp. Brennan) regarding a conversation he had with Andrew Warren(Waren). Warren contacted him about rumors he was going to be promoted to Inspector, he hadn't been notified yet but was inquiring about the transition from policing to management, should he get promoted. Insp. Brennan told Supt. Oates he also heard Didham had cleaned out his desk and Warren had also seen Didham at the RNC CBS Office on computer. Following this, Chief Boland contacted Kim Harding, one of his managers to ensure Didhams computer was backed up. 1) On March 9, 2020, Chief Boland received an email from Supt. Shawn O'Reilly bringing to his attention a rumor was circulating inside and outside the organization concerning the promotions. He stated who the officers being promoted were and the positions/promotions they were going into. Further to that he said he was going on leave next week and retuming on Tuesday, March 24. 20He did not want to hear nor his family hear about the promotions through media or rumor. m) | reviewed an email exchange between Supt. Shawn O'Reilly and Chief Joseph Boland and the RNG, a copy of the conversation is as follows:1” From: Shawn O'Reilly Sent: Monday, March 9, 2020 12:55 PM ‘To: Joe Boland Subject: Commissioned Officer appointments Chief, {need to bring to your attention that rumours are circulating within and outside the organization that Cabinet has ‘approved Commissioned Officer appointments. I's my understanding the following appoints have been made: ‘Supt Ed Oates to D/Chief of Patrol Operations (0/Chief Woodruff to Criminal Operations) Insp Torn Warren to Supt of Operational Patol Services Sgt Colin MeNell to Insp of Special Services Section CIO Sgt Andrew Warren to Insp of Operational Support, OPS Sgt Luanne Efford to Insp of Lab West Next week t'm on annual leave and returning to work on Tuesday, March 24th. If true, | would rather be forrally rotiied before my annual leave, as | willbe out of the country and it wll provide an opportunity to inform my family before | go. I rather they heart from me and not through media or rumour. Thank you, ‘Shawn ‘Superintendent Shawn O'Relly Officer in Charge Criminal Investigation Division Royal Newfoundland Constabulary mai: shawnor@®rnc.govnlca From: Joe Boland Sent: Monday, March 9, 2020 1:25 PM Tor Shawn OReilly Subject: RE: Commissioned Officer appointments ‘Supt. OReilly, "These emails were provided othe RCMP electronically and paper copies were hand delivered by Counsel ofthe (Chief Wendy Zdebiak on March 24, 2020 which is the date reviewed them. a| cannot speak to Cabinet appointments uni | have been officially notified by Cabinet on who the successful Candidates are. | do expect to receive ths information soon and will notify all members who were involved in the ‘promotional competition of the results accordingly. Original message From: Shawn O'Reilly > Date: 2020-03-10 12:13 pm, (GMT-03:30) To: Joe Boland > Subject: Deputy Chief competition Chief, | would tke an opportunity to meet with you to receive feedback regarding the Deputy Chief competition. Ws been ‘over a year since | competed and it was my intention to meet with you sooner, however the process has dragged on ‘much longer than anticipated, Even though much time has passed I do see value in meeting with you for feedback. Inthe meantime, can you provide me with my overal score and where | ranked nthe competion? Thank you Shawn Superintendent Shawn O'Reilly ‘ffcerin charge Criminal investigation Division Royal Newfoundland Constabulary ‘mall shawnor@rne.gov.nlca - Orginal message From: Joe Boland > Date: 2020-03-10 640 pm, (GMT-03:30) ‘To: Shawn O'Relly > Subject: Re: Deputy Chief compet Supt O'Relly, Susan Rumsey will get back to you concerning this request. B Sent from my Bell Samsung device over Canada's largest network. 2From: Shawn O'Reilly Sent Tuesday, March 10, 2020 809 PM ‘Tor Joe Boland ‘Subject: RE: Deputy Chief competition Thank you Sir. ‘Sent from my Bell Samsung device over Canada's largest network. 1) On March 10, 2020, Chief Boland met with D/M Jennifer Mercer, Elizabeth Day and Denise Woodrow. After a lengthy discussion they determined a Criminal Investigation should be initiated. They also determined the RCMP should be the investigating agency. 0) At 4:40 p.m. Chief Boland airived at RNC HQ, Supt. Ed Oates was in the office of Dept. Chief Woodruff. Oates said Insp. Brennan had been approached by Sgt. Derrick Cole (Sgt. Cole) who told him he had seen the appointment paper. Sgt. Cole had been working the moming of March § when the leaked information was coming from the NCO Office. Oates also said he had heard Didham had made a respectful workplace complaint against him and but had not seen it nor had he heard from anyone in relation to it. p) On March 11, 2020, discussions continued regarding the investigation with D/M Mercer and staff including Elizabeth Day, Denise Woodrow and Renee Tincor regarding the investigation and how to proceed. They discussed Minister Gambin- Walsh remaining in cabinet and having access to confidential information. Chief Boland stressed the integrity of the investigation should come first and no one should act in a manner that could tip off possible suspects and risk losing evidence. @) Chief Boland further discussed the investigation with SIRT director, Mike King and they decided to contact Chief Superintendent Garrett Woolsey (C/Supt. Woolsey) of the RCMP regarding filing the criminal complaint regarding Minister Gambin - Walsh, in consultation with Mike King they agreed if it is determined any RNC officer was involved, S.1.R.T would assume that aspect. 1) At 12:36 p.m. Chief Boland was contacted by the Premiers Office and requested to meet.with him, which Chief Boland did later that afternoon. Chief Boland briefed 23the Premier on what the situation and told him a criminal investigation would be requested. Chief Boland advised the Premier not to take any action and to proceed with business as usual. 's) | reviewed an email exchange between Supt Oates and Didham on March 11, 2020. Supt. Oates had forwarded Chief Boland, a copy of the conversation is as follows:1® from: Paul Didham > ‘Sent: Wednesday, March 1, 2020 1233 PM ‘To: Ed Oates > Subject: Sgt Tim Hogan (Retired) Supt. Oates, ‘As you may recall, | brought it to your attention that | have been told numerous times that Sgt. Tim Hogan (retired) has been trying to influence the RNC promotional process with government. ‘A part of his attempted influence, isto have me net promoted. ‘Another RNC Member came to me today to say the same thing, and this time | was informed that Sgt. Hogan is good friends with Minister Andrew Parsons, and on occasion they travel across the island together. | would like you to bring this information forward to Chief Boland, and'if there is any truth to it, | would lke to have it addressed. Thank you From: Ed Oates Sent: Wednesday, March 11, 2020 12:38 PM ‘To: Paul Didham Ce: Joe Boland Subject RE: Sgt. Tim Hogan (Retired) | can recall you making this comment to me a couple of months back. I have copied Chief Boland on my response 10, your e-mail. ‘Superintendent Ed Oates Operational Patrol Services Division 7 Royal Newfoundland Constabulary 1 Fort Townshend St John's, NL AIC2G2, Paul Didham "™ These emails were provided to the RCMP electronically and paper copies were hand delivered by Counsel of the (Chief Wendy Zdebiak on March 24, 2020. I reviewed these on March 27,2020. 24t) Chief Boland noted he had no idea what Didham was talking about in relation to. Tim Hogan (Hogan) and Minister Andrew Parsons (Minister Parsons). He had heard some rumor months ago; Hogan would go publi if Didham was promoted. Chief Boland suspected this was regarding an investigation that was done a few years ago. Chief Boland doesn't know and is not familiar with the investigation. He hadn't heard anything about the rumor since and does not even know who told him about it. u) Later that evening, Chief Boland provided a letter requesting a Criminal Investigation be conducted by the RCMP to DC Woodruff who had scheduled a breakfast meeting the following moming with C/Supt. Woolsey to deliver it personally. 29) reviewed the handwritten notes of Supt. Oates and leamed the following:"* a) On March §, 2020, Supt.Oates met with Didham in his office who advised he'd been dealing with some issues (internals) going on over the past couple of months and had reached out to E.A.P because of these issues. He requested Supt. Oates take notes of their conversation to which Supt. Oates stated he always takes notes of most conversations. Didham said he was going to make a Respectful Workplace complaint and was advised by Darrell Hayward to bring this to his immediate manager's attention and said he may go further depending on promotions coming out. Supt.Oates told him he was not going to discuss the promotions, he heard of rumors at lunchtime but nobody had advised him of anything and he wasn't having that conversation. b) In addition to this, Didham said he received a call from Jeff Thistle (Thistle) the night before during the conversation told Thistle told him he had heard from Ed Billard, Didham was not getting promoted because of Tim Hogan. c) Didham wanted to bring this forward and was told to report to him. Didham said he felt he had done “good work" in the role (The role of Acting Inspector he had been in) to which Supt. Oates replied he had. Supt.Oates told Didham he had to leave as the Chief had requested he attend a meeting. Didham was finished and told Supt. Oates not to take it personally. ' | reviewed these notes on March 29, 2020. 25d) Supt. Oates attended the Executive Office, Chief Boland was seated in DC ‘Woodruffs office with him. Chief Boland inquired about comments Supt. Oates had made to DC Woodruff at lunch. Supt. Oates explained he went to the washroom and ran into Sgt. Mercer who made.a congratulatory comment to him. When he returned to his office he spoke with Insp. Sharon Warren who told him the rumors were rampant that morning about promotions when she reported to work. She said Tom Warren, Colin McNeil, Andrew Warren and Louanne Efford were being promoted. ) Chief Boland was not happy to hear this rumor. He did not confirm nor deny the rumor and Supt. Oates did not inquire. ) Supt.Oates informed Chief Boland of the meeting he had with Didham prior to coming to his office. During this meeting, Didham told him he would be making a Respectful Workplace complaint and may go further depending on the announcement of promotions. Supt. Oates also advised of the phone call Didham had received from Jeff Thistle. 9) On March 8, 2020 Supt. Oates received a call from Insp. Brennan who told him the following: ) Insp. Brennan had received a call from Andrew Warren regarding rumors floating around that he would be promoted. He inquired if it was true and how his role would change. Warren asked Insp. Brennan if he missed police work after moving from management. Warren also told Insp. Brennan he had gone to CBS office and found Didham there. li) Later that day, Supt. Oates spoke with Warren on an unrelated matter when Warren inquired ‘about the status of Didhams role. He said Didham had been in the day before and cleaned out most of his office. Supt.Oates said he was still in his current role; he hadn't been notified otherwise. They also discussed Supt. Oates conversation with Insp. Brennan, Supt. Oates advised he had not been told anything about promotions, they were only rumors. h) On March 9, 2020, Supt. Oates spoke with Didham regarding the following: i) Supt.Oates told Didham about the call he received from Insp. Brennan, the conversation about him having cleaned out his office and the inquires if Didham 26was stil in his position. Supt. Oates said he was still in the role as nothing had been brought to his attention. They discussed an issue the previous Saturday with TRU (Tactical Response Unit). Didham admitted he spoke with Andrew Warren when he was in on Saturday and he did clear out some junk from his office last week. ji) The second issue discussed was the respectful work place complaint they spoke about on Thursday. Supt. Oates stated to Didham if he decided to make a Respectful Workplace complaint he would have to write a formal complaint which is outlined in Harassment Free Workplace Policy and can be found online. Didham stated he hasn't decided if he will move forward with any action, he told Supt. Oates about his frustration if the rumors were true relating to the promotions to which Supt. Oates replied he understood. 30) On March 26, 2020, Chief Boland and Counsel to the Chief, Wendy Zdebiak attended RCMP Headquarters, Chief Boland provided an audio recorded statement to Sat. ‘Adam Palmer and |. From his statement I1eamed the following: a) On March 4, 2020, Chief Boland received a text message from Deputy Minister Jennifer Mercer in the moming advising the RNC commissioned’ officer appointment documents were being forwarded that evening to Cabinet. At 4:50 p.m. Chief Boland was in DC Woodruffs ‘office who advised him about a conversation he had with Insp.Roche. (Insp. Roache, was in the competition but ‘was not successful) Insp. Roache was apparently angry which was odd. Insp. did not say why he was angry. DC Woodruff said he received a text message from Didham (who was also not successful) the text said words to the effect, “I guess my work was good, just not good enough.” The text was in relation to a text conversation between Didham and DC Woodruff. Almost immediately, Boland suspected that Insp. Roach and Didham knew they were not successful. Within minutes, Simone Dyall entered and told Boland and Woodruff that Didham had just sent a message requesting to be removed from the manager's social fund. Chief Boland said he knew Didham must know and he was surprised as the officer promotion process was very secretive. Chief Boland immediately thought that the 7b) 4) leak must have come from Minister of Service NL, Sherry Gambin-Walsh. He came to this conclusion based on previous text messages he had seen between Gambin-Walsh and Didham in the past. An example is when a vacancy opened up at MRD and she sent a message to Didham of words to the effect "This would be a good position for you, | thought of you.” Didham showed Boland the text message. The second message was in late summer/early fall of when Gambin- Walsh sent Didham saying that the Premier was stepping down. This particular message was also shown to DC Woodruff, Boland called Deputy Minister Megan Nesbitt and advised that he thought the information was leaked. Boland asked what the process was to get it cabinet as he did not know how it worked. Later that evening, Supt. O'Reilly sent an‘email out about a patrol division search Boland felt this was a shot at Supt. Oates who, beat O'Reilly in the Deputy Chief ‘competition. The next morning (March:5), Boland spoke to separately to both Minister Brian Warr as well as Minister Bernie Davis. From these conversations he leamed that the appointment documents had been sent to the Routine Committee which Gambin-Walsh was a part of. Boland also spoke with D/M Mercer and expressed his concerns. Chief Boland also spoke to Woodruff.who fold him Supt. Oates had been approached by a patrol Sgt. who congratulated him on his appointment to Deputy Chief and then he had a conversation with Insp. Sharon Warren who told him the following: Supt.Oates was going to be the next Deputy Chief, Tom Warren was being promoted to Superintendent, Luanne Efford was being promoted to Inspector in Labrador, Colin McNeil was being promoted to Inspector of Special Services, ‘Andrew Warren was being promoted to Inspector of Operations Support Services. The information Inspector Warren revealed in the aforementioned paragraph was 100% accurate and it was leaked. This furthered his belief it was leaked from Gambin-Walsh to Didham. Chief Boland did not believe that an Acting Inspector ‘would behave the way Didham did if it was only a rumour. There had been a small leak to the media in the past about the delay in the process but nothing about who was getting it. 28) Chief Boland, with the assistance of Kim Harding and Wendy Zdebiak wrote the appoint nent documents together and would send them directly to the Department of Justice to ensure it was written properly. f) Chief Boland had originally intended to promote Didham to Inspector, however, Didham had made comments about whether or not being an Inspector was for him. Approximately 3 months ago, Chief Boland decided that Didham was not ready and removed his name from the process. 9) Chief Boland considered the process was very long and only got out the day Cabinet got it. Supt. O'Reilly sent an email ‘using specific language from the documents that suggested to him they saw the document. h) Chief Boland contacted Minister Andrew Parsons (who is his boss) and expressed his concerns, Minister Parsons then spoke to the Clerk. Chief Boland originally thought this was not criminal rather an internal problem. He was aware that everyone including cleaners, police officers, veterans and community members now knew this information. i) Chief Boland described the process is dependent on the Lieutenant Governors approval, the Lieutenant Governor in Council has the final say and can override his recommendations. i) Due to 2 police officer being involved he felt this may be a SIRT investigation, he and Wendy Zdebiak formed the belief this was a crime, Breach of Public Trust, s. 122 CC. Chief Boland met with Mike King, Director of SIRT and then met the Premier, Dwight Ball. He met with the Premier because he believed this could take down a minority government. k) The Premier and his Clerk, Betty Day were concemed about how to deal with Minister Gambin-Walsh. Chief Boland advised they should continue business as usual and a criminal investigation should occur, all other investigations (specifically internal) should be paused. The request would'be made to C/Supt, Woolsey of the RCMP and Minister Gambin-Walsh should not be advised. Gambin-Walsh would not be the subject of a SIRT investigation because she is not a police officer. Chief Boland and Premier Ball only had one conversation. He told the Premier that he 29could not interfere in the investigation and that. he should continue business as usual. !) Chief Boland said the promotion documents were written on an electronic USB, there was never any written documentation or anything printed at the RNC. He does not know what happened once the USB was hand delivered to the goverment. This promotion process began in April, 2019, during this process applicants self-identify and apply for the promotions. The only RNC people who knew of the promotions were himself, DC Woodruff, Kim Harding (Executive Director, Support Services) and Wendy Zdebiak. The names put forth are only recommendations, sometimes the government does not accept the recommendation and may ask for more information or even override the decision. Once the Routine Committee makes a decision, it usually means the process is done and it is finalized it goes to Cabinet. His understanding is that the Routine Committee basically rubber stamps it and then forwards to Cabinet for discussion. Chief Boland believed he was going to get an answer within days after DIM Mercer texted him on March 4. m) Those at RNC who curreritly know about the investigation are himself, DC Woodruff, Zdebiak, Kim Harding, Supt. Oates and Inspector Tom Warren (Tom Warren). ] n) Chief Boland believes the text message from the Minister was on Didhams personal phone. Didham also has a work phone which is a Samsung and Didham always carries two phones. ©) The Routine Committee is comprised of Gambin-Walsh, Crocker, Dempster, Haggie and Warr are the ministers on the committee. [| believe the Ministers Chief Boland described as being on the Committee Are Minister Sherry Gambin-Walsh (Placentia = St. Mary's), Minister Steve Crocker (Carbonear ~Trinity ~ Bay de Verde), Minister Lisa Dempster (Cartwright - L’Anse au Clair), Minister John Haggie (Gander) and Minister Brian Warr (Baie Verte + Green Bay), | believe there are the members on the Routine Committee because | checked the names on the House of Assembly Website for Newfoundland and Labrador. The website lists all of the members and no one else had the same surnames]P) Chief Boland advised when he spoke to Minister Brian Warr (Minister Warr), Minister Warr never told him about the promotion documents even though he made inquiries. : @) Chief Boland stated Didham said he intends to lay a respectful workplace harassment complaint against Chief Boland and Supt. Oates. To his knowledge, nothing has been laid yet, but he believes it is related to this process. ) Chief Boland's working relationship with Didham began when Didham was assigned to Communications, that was when they first met. Didham was under investigation for fraud but Boland had no knowledge of that. Didham went off on sick leave as a result. Didham later worked for Chief Boland in Support Services doing Accident investigations. Chief Boland supported Didham for promotion after speaking to then RNC Chief Bill Janes. He had no issues with Didham they only had one minor incident over taking a work vehicle home but it was resolved. Didham was a good member and he discussed promotion with him. Chief Boland gave Didham an Acting Inspector position and he fully intended to promote Didham up to 3-4 months ago. He considered it but felt Didham was not actually ready for promotion. s) Inspector Warren got her information from the patrol Sgt's. He does not know who specifically told her and does not think she was shown anything. She was upset and part of the promotion process and leamed from the Sgt's she was not being promoted. t) Chief Boland does not have knowledge about Sgt. Derrick Cole (Sgt. Cole) being shown documents. He knew Insp. Brennan was sitting on a panel where Sgt. Cole was the subject member. Sgt. Cole told Insp. Brennan he saw the documents. (Boland does not have direct knowledge of this). u) Chief Boland was informed Didham was seen cleaning out his desk and was in the CBS office as if he was moving out by SuptOates. In addition to that he received emails from Supt. O'Reilly: : v) An email stating the appointments and the email which he believed was Supt. O'Reilly taking a shot at Supt. Oates. There was another email where O'Reilly was anlooking for feedback which was unusual given the timing. Chief Boland would have expected him to reach out to him but not to the Deputy Minister. w) Chief Boland noticed the email from O'Reilly about the appointments had very ‘specific language and information that was related to the appointment and to DC ‘Woodruff moving positions. This was not a promotion but was also included. [Chief Boland said the language used was not common police language it was terms used by Government that would not normally be used by thei¢ organization.) x) Chief Boland is aware Gambin-Walsh and Didham are from the same part of the province. They knew each other back in school and before he joined the RNC and she became an MHA. Didham has about 20 years’ service. He does not think that Gambin-Walsh offered Didham the job but was encouraged him to apply. Chief Boland is aware MRD falls under Gambin-Walsh's responsibilty. y) Chief Boland said Insp.Roche, Didham, Supt. O'Reilly, Inspector. Sue Bill, Inspector Terry Corbin are close friends, he describes them as a “group. 2) Didham has stated that retired Sergeant Tim Hogan (Hogan) is friends with Minister Parsons and if Didham is promoted Hogan would bring Didhams past up. Didham believed that Hogan was interfering with the process. Chief Boland advised he has never spoken to Parsons about Didham or Hogan. Minister Parsons had no say in the names that were put forward. [1 am aware that there was an investigation into Didham in relation fo an incident when both Didham and Hogan were ‘on RNC Drug Section, | do not know the specific details.) aa)Chief Boland had Didhams computer backed up after leaming about Didham clearing out his office and being on a different computer. bb)Chief Boland described promotions as being “historically divisive". In this case, he could not speak about the promotions due to the secrecy involved even though the rumours are 100% accurate. He said this hias been “devastating for morale" It robbed people the opportunity to be told through’due process and-to address the concems of those who were unsuccessful in a proper way..He feels that people have lost faith and trust in the process. This incident has undermined the capacity of the Chief's Office, especially the loss of the trust in senior management. The time frame from when DiMinister Mercer sent him the text on 32March 4 and when he believes people found out is very short and only a few hours. There is currently no intemal investigation. 31)On March 26, 2020, DC Woodruff and Counsel to the Chief, Wendy Zdebiak attended RCMP Headquarters, DC Boland provided an audio recorded statement to Sgt. Adam Palmer and |. From his statement | leamed the following: a) The commissioned officer appointments are made by the Lieutenant Governor in Council. Recommendations go from Chief Boland to Minister of Justice Office, then Cabinet onto the Lieutenant Governor in ‘Council and this process began in April 2019, there was a position for Deputy Chief and other commissioned officer open. b) On March 4, 2020, just before 5:00 pm, DC Woodruff went to see Insp. Paul Roche, Officer in Charge of Crimes Against Persons with the RNC. He went to speak to Roche regarding an upcoming training course. As he walked into Roche's office, Roache hung up the phone. Roache was tense, standing up and had pursed lips. Something appeared to be bothering Roache, but he didn't say anything. They talked about the course and Roache appeared dismissive of the topic. The room felt tense and he eventually asked Roache what was wrong Roache said he couldn't talk to him as he was "too angry" to speak. Roache wouldn't tell him what was wrong, but Woodruff thought it might be about him because he wouldn't talk about it. Woodruff went back to his office and got a text from Alinsp Paul Didham. They don't text often, but had a text conversation the day before regarding a file Didham was involved in which resulted in a guilty plea. He told Didham it was good work, but other than that, there was not much to the conversation. : ) After speaking to Roach on March 4, then Didham sent a text that said "Good work, but | guess not good enough” Woodruff found this unusual and chose not to respond. Then Chief Boland walked into his office and they were having general conversation, during conversation Woodruff then told him about the Roache conversation and the Didham text. As they were speaking, Simone Dyall, a civilian 33dq) 9) h) member entered the office and said Didham emailed her and asked to be removed from the manager's fund. All civilian and swom managers are part of the fund which is optional, itfunds social events. It is unusual for someone in an acting role to ask to be removed. He felt that Didham knew he wasn't being promoted Didham had previously spoken to DC Woodruff about how the acting role wasn't for him. This was also unusual as most people in the acting role try their best. ‘Awhile ago, (he does not have notes because he was at the gym) Insp.Roche called to tell him Didham was very upéet and-he had to talk him off the ledge. Didham was very upset that he was not. selected for an Incident Commander course and another acting Inspector was. Roche said Didham may call him. About 20 minutes later Didham did call him. Didham was upset but respectful. He felt he should have got the course and not Colin McNeil. Woodruff told him he did not have to explain it to him, but he did tell him that MeNeil had 9 years’ tactical team experience Normally only confirmed inspectors get put on the course, however they needed someone to go on it. Didham was considered for the course but there weren't enough seats. The Acting Inspector position is a testing position to see how people handle it. Inthe evening on March 4, 2020, Woodruff got a text from Roche that said “Sorry about today, but | had just had a bad phone call and really couldn't talk." DC Woodruff responded "10-4". The moming of March 5, he spoke to Chief Boland after a conversation he had just had with Supt Oates where he leamed Supt Oates and Insp. Warren had spoken. Insp. Warren was approached by a patrol NCO who said she was not being was promoted but Supt. Oates was being promoted to DiChief. The NCO also knew that Colin McNeil and Andrew Warren were being promoted to Inspector and Tom Warren was being promoted to Superintendent. Supt.Oates was upset Insp. Warren heard this from an NCO. Chief Boland, DC Woodruff and ‘Supt. Oates met and he told them the same story. The information came from the lowest ranks and up the ranks. 34i) DC Woodruff stated the Chief only recommends promotions, but the Lieutenant Governor has the final say. It is a very secretive topic and Woodruff has not discussed the matter. 1) DC Woodruff would not normally look at Didham based on Didhams ethics and actions. But, Chief Boland followed up with the old Chief and he felt there were no issues. As Didham was in the role, Woodruff began to change his mind that Didham would make a good Inspector. Didham was a good worker but had some incidents that cast that a doubt, such as the Incident Command situation. DC Woodruff began to try and help Didham with the upcoming Inspector interview as he had done with other people, DC Woodruff later learned that he was doing the interviews. He had high hopes for Didham but Didham did not do very well in the interview at all and Woodruff was disappointed. k) DC Woodruff believes that the leak of information could only have come from the government. He knows that Didham and Minister Gambin-Walsh are friends from the same community. Didham told Woodruff Gambin-Walsh offered Didham a position at Motor Vehicles but Didham tumed it down. The offer was made when the job wasn't even offered. Another time, Didham told him that during Question Period at the House of Assembly they were talking about Cannabis or Traffic issues. Minister Gambin-Walsh was being asked questions by the opposition, she would then text Didham and he would text back the answers she should give. He felt it was inappropriate and highly unusual. About a year ago they were at a manager meeting. On the way out, Didham showed Woodruff a text from his phone from Gambin-Walsh that the Premier would be stepping down in the coming months. Didham was smiling about this, DC Woodruff was surprised. and could not see a job related reason why this would be sent to him. DC Woodruff told him he needed to tell the Chief and Didham said he already did. 1) Around the 4 or § of March, 2020, Shawn O'Reilly sent an email complaining about an improper search about an officer outside his division. He found the email was aggressive as O'Reilly is normally a calm person. O'Reilly is another person who was not successful in the promotion process. 35,m) DC Woodruff gave RCMP C/Supt Woolsey thé mandate letter on March 12, 2020. Woodruff discussed with Boland who the best person to investigate the matter was. Chief Boland dealt with Justice on this. DC Woodruff was meeting with Woolsey on unrelated matters and was told to deliver the letter. Chief Boland was the only person who spoke to the Government about the investigation. 1n) DC Woodruff said Boland and Kim Harding (Executive Director) knew about the promotions. He leaned from the leak that he himself was being moved to another position. ; 0) DC Woodruff clarified Didham told him about the job at MRD, he did not show him the text but Didham was clear that he was offered the job by Minister Gambin- Walsh. if Didham wanted it, it was his. p) When DC Woodruff was shown the text regarding the Premier stepping down, he does not know what phone it was on but Didham usually has two phones on him. {q) The text Woodruff received from Didham on March 4 about the "good work" was from [EET is home number). Didhams work ce! is A 1) In 34 years of policing, Woodruff has never heard of a Minister reaching out to a police officer during question period. On occasion’ Ministers have contacted officers directly but very rarely. Usually it is a Minister to Chief level for conversation. s) DC Woodruff stated there has never been actidn taken by the RNC with respect to the text conversations. DC Woodruff has heard Didham is considering a respectful workplace complaint, but he does not know if it was filed. DC Woodruff has heard of rumours that he has filed a new complaint, but does not know for sure. t) DC Woodruff has a heard that someone may have been shown a list of appointments but he does not for sure. He has hever seen a paper. u) DC Woodruff feels that this situation is one of the most impactful things to happen to the members. In the past, the promotion process has been all consuming and dominated conversations. This has had a negative impact on the people and the organization as a whole affecting morale. 3632)! received an email from Wendy Zdebiak and learned the following: a) DC Woodruff had Paul Didhams information saved in the contacts in his phone, she obtained a screenshot and forwarded to me, it was as follows: iv) Email — pdidham@re.gov.nl.ca 33)| received an email from Wendy Zdebiak and learned the following:?* a) Paul Didhams home address is| His home phone number is Sheryl Gambin — Walsh - Position of Public: Trust 34)I reviewed the Members Parliamentary Guide of Newfoundland and Labrador and leamed there are two.oaths required by a Member of the House of Assembly, as follows:22 a) Oath/Affirmation of Allegiance: The oath or affirmation of loyalty to the Sovereign required by the Constitution Act, 1867 and the House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act. This must be completed by a Member before taking their seat in the House of Assembly. b) Oath/Affirmation of Office: The oath or affirmation taken by Members before they take their seat in the House in which they swear/affirm that they are qualified to take office, will faithfully perform their duties, and will not be influenced in carrying out their public responsibilities directty or indirectly by monetary or other personal or private interests. 2 | received this email on March 25, 2020 and reviewed it.on March 29, 2020 2 [ received this email on March 26, 2020 and reviewed it on March 29, % [reviewed the Members Parliamentary Guide on guide on March 30, 2020. 3736)I reviewed the House of Assembly Accountability Integrity and Administration Act and leamed the following? Before being permitted to take his or her place and vote in the House of Assembly, a member shall take and describe before the Lieutenant - Governor or a person designated by the Lieutenant - Governor an oath of allegiance in the following form: Oath or affirmation of member 5, Before being permitted to take his or her place and vote in the House of Assembly, a member shall take and subscribe before the Lieutenant-Governor or a person designated by the ieutenant- Governor an oath of allegiance in the following form: 1, do swear (or affirm) that I willbe faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second, her hers and successors according to law (in the case where the oath is taken, add hhelp me God. and also an oath of office in the following form: 1, do swear (or affirm) that {8} Lam fully qualified to hold the office of Member for the District of to which | have been elected; {b) | have not knowingly contravened the Elections Act, 1991 respecting any matter in relation to my election; {c) 1 wil faithfully to the best of my ability, perform the duties and responsibilities of my office and will not allow any director indirect monetary or other personal or private interest to influence my conduct or affect my duties in public matters; and (@) Laffiem, ascribe to and agree to follow the Code of Conduct of Members adopted by the House of “Assembly (in the case where the oath is taken, add "So help me God”). [I believe given Minister Gambin-Walsh is a current member of the House of Assembly ‘she has taken the above noted oaths, therefore an “official.”,] 36)I reviewed the Code of Conduct for Members Of The House Of Assembly and learned the following: a) A Code of Conduct for Members of the House of Assembly was developed by the ‘Standing Committee on Privileges and Elections as directed by section 35 of the 23 { eeviewed the following Act on March 29, 2020 on the following website sor. tatwresh10- 2+ reviewed this Acton March 31, 2020 on the following website nua assembly. ex/M embers MembersCodeOfConduct aspx. 38House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act, and passed by a resolution of the House on May 26, 2008. It was amended by resolution of the House on December 2, 2019. ‘The Code is the standard by which all Members agree to govern themselves in carrying out their responsibilities as elected officials. As a part of the oath of office, all Members agree to follow this Code of Conduct before being permitted to take their seat. Code of Conduct Commitments: , Members of this House of Assembly recognize that we are responsible to the people of Newfoundiand and Labrador and will responsibly execute our official duties in order to promote the human, environmental and economic welfare of Newfoundland and Labrador. Members of this House of Assembly respect the law and the institution of the Legistature and acknowledge our need to maintain the public trust placed in us by performing our duties with accessibility, accountability, courtesy, honesty and integrity. Principles: 1. Members shall inform themselves of and shall conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions and spirit of the Standing Orders of the House of Assembly, the House of Assembly Accountability, Integrity and Administration Act, the Members’ Resources and Allowances Rules, the Elections Act, 1991, the House of Assembly Act and this Code of Conduct and shall ensure that their conduct does not bring the integrity of their office or the House of Assembly into disrepute. 3910. It is a fundamental objective of their holding public office that Members serve their fellow citizens with integrity in order to improve the economic and social conditions of the people of the province. Members reject political corruption and refuse to participate in unethical Political practices which tend to-undermine the democratic traditions of our province and its institutions. Members will act lawfully and in a manner that will withstand the closest public scrutiny. Neither the law nor this code is designed to be exhaustive and there will be occasions on which Members will find itnecessary to adopt more stringent norms of conduct in order to protect the public interest and to enhance public confidence and trust. Members will not engage in personal conduct that exploits for private reasons their positions or authorities or that would tend to bring discredit to their offices. Members will carry out their official duties and arrange their private financial affairs in a manner that protects the public interest and enhances public confidence and trust in government and in high standards of ethical conduct in public office. Members will base their conduct on a consideration of the public interest. ‘They are individually responsible for preventing conflicts of interest and will ‘endeavor to prevent them from arising: Members will take all reasonable steps to resolve any such conflict quickly and in a manner which is in the best interests of the public. In performing their official duties, Members will apply public resources prudently and only for the purposes for which they are intended. Members will not use official information which is not in the public domain, or information obtained in confidence in the course of their official duties, for personal gain or the personal gain of others. Members should have regard to the duty of public service employees to remain politically impartial when carrying out their duties. 4011. Members should promote and support these principles by leadership and example. 12. This Code of Conduct has a continuing effect except as amended or rescinded by resolution of the House of Assembly. [I believe Minister Gambin-Watsh sharing the information was a breach of the code of conduct expected of her as a Member of the House of Assembly, specifically Section 9 as, noted above} 37)1 viewed the www.assembly.nl.ca website, which is the official government website for member of the house of Assembly and leamed the following:25 a) Sherry Gambin- Walsh, Placentia ~ St. Mary's, Liberal, Minister of Service Newfoundland ‘and Labrador, Minister Responsible for the Public Procurement Agency and Minister Responsible for Workplace NL. Her email listed as sherryaambinwalsh@aov.nl.ca, Her Confederation Building Office information is Phone: (709) 729-4712, Fax: (709) 729- 4754 : Her Constituency Office address is listed as McCormack Building, 1 O'Reilly Street, P.O. Box 515, Placentia NL AOB 2Y0, Phone: (709) 227-1304, Fax: (708) 227-1307, Toll Free: 1-877-898-0898 b) On her profile it says Minister Sherry Gambin-Walsh was born in Placentia. She graduated from the General Hospital School of Nursing in 1990 and holds a certificate in leadership from MUN. She has held numerous leadership positions in employment and the nonprofit sector. Minister Gambin-Walsh worked as 2 neonatal nurse and as the Executive Director for the NL Association for Community Living. Her non-profit involvement is lengthy and includes the Autism Society of NL and the Avalon Gateway Ragional Economic Development Board. 38) | viewed the niliberals.ca website which is a website dedicated to the Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador her profile information was relatively the same as the previous paragraph, in addition to this, | leamed the following:* a) After being elected to the provincial legislature in 2015 as MHA for the District of Placentia ~ St. Mary's, Minister Gambin-Walsh was appointed to serve in Cabinet as the Minister 331 viewed this on March 30, 2020. 28 viewed this website on March 30%, 2020, a1of Children, Seniors, and Social Development. She is the Minister Responsible for the Newfoundland and Labrador Housing Corporation, and the Stalus of Persons with Disabilities. b) As recently as March 20,2020, a news article was posted by the Canadian Broadcasting Association (CBC) which included a picture and quotes from Minister Sherry Gambin- Walsh, Placentia St. Mary's MHA, this article included the caption and picture below: Placentia-St. Mary's MHA Sherry Gambin-Walsh says she doesn't support proceeding with a leadership contest amid a public health emergency. (Adam Walsh/CBC) [lam satisfied as a result of the previous paragraphs that Sherry Gambin-Walsh is a sitting ‘sworn member of the NL House of Assembly, she is a Cabinet Minister who is responsible for the Department of Service Newfoundland and Labrador and is the Minister responsible for the Public Procurement and Minister Responsible for Workplace NL.) 38)| believe Sheryl Gambin-Walsh is a current member of the House of Assembly and that she has divulged information subject to cabinet confidence andior secrecy. She swore an oath that she was qualified to take office, would faithfully perform their duties, and will not be influenced in carrying out their public responsibilities directly or indiractly by monetary or other personal or private interests but used her position in office to supply information to a personal afriend of hers. | believe she breached the Code of Conduct expected of her as a member of the House of Assembly and as a public official by divulging the privileged information, therefore committing a breach of trust. Paul Didham — Position of Public Trust 40)I read the oath of office worn by Constable Paul Didham on July 17, 2000, it said the following: . a) |, Constable Paul Didham, do swear (solemnly, sincerely and truly declare and affirm) that | will faithfully, honestly and impartially to the best of my knowledge, skill and ability execute and perform the duties required of me as a Member of the Royal Newfoundiand Constabulary and will. well and truly obey and perform all lawful orders and instructions that | receive as such, without fear, favour or affection of or towards, any person and that | will not directly or indirectly, without due authority, disclose to any person and information or other matters that may come to me in the performance of my duties as a Member of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, So Help Me God. Sworn the 17® day of July, 2020 by Paul Didham and the Chief of Police. ‘41)Paul Didham was swom in as a police officer to discharge a public duty while working for a public police agency. He swore not to “disclose to any person and information or other matters that may come to me in the performance of my duties’. | believe he was a party to the offence and also breached the public trust by sharing information he knew was not available to the public. Relationship between Gambin- Walsh and Didham 42)| reviewed a report completed by RCMP Division Criminal Analysis Section, Analyst, Roxanne Matchim-Brown and leamed the following:?” a) Between March 26 and March 30, 2020, Analyst Roxanne Matchim-Brown did ‘online research which identified social media accounts associated to Paul Didham » [reviewed this report on March 31, 2020. aand Sherry Gambin-Walsh showing an association does exist between both subject's social media accounts. b) Due to privacy settings in all involved Facebook accounts, the list of friends could not be viewed. However, a posted comment and “likes” on DIDHAM’s account, from Minister Gambin-Walsh's account, indicate the two accounts are associated. 1) A congratulatory message was posted to DIDHAM's account by Minister Gambin -Walsh in response to Didham announcing his 25th anniversary of attending the Atlantic Police Academy. (Posted 2020-01-23). Likes were posted to Didhams account from Minister Gambin Walsh on 2019-11-01 and again on 2019-11-30 in response to. two posts related to the benefits of dog ‘ownership. {i) Upon reviewing the comments of thiree Facebook accounts, there appear to be shared associates with the same sumame Didham. These associates seem to be political supporters or constituents of Minister Gambin-Walsh. ii) The Twitter accounts of Paul Didham and Sherry Gambin-Walsh both list one another as followers of each other's account. iv) Didham retweeted two tweets that originated from Gambin-Walsh's twitter account, The first was in support of honoring the legacy of Neveah Denine (2018-08-08) and the second, in support of the passing of Bill 23, an act to amend the Highway Traffic Act (2018-05-29). v) A google search of both subjects revealed that A/Insp. Didham presented to the NL Board of Commissioners of Public Utlities Automobile Insurance Review, on behalf of the Consumers Advocate (2018-09-27). The related document was later submitted to The Honourable Sherry GAMBIN-WALSH, Minister of Service NL. 43) On March 31, 2020, Sgt. Adam Palmer obtained and audio statement from Chief Boland, this was a follow up interview to the one taken statement taken on March 26, 2020, and leamed that following:2® 2» [listened to this statement on April 1*, 2020. 44) Chief Boland wanted to disclose some text messages he previously did not discuss and share additional information that he had thought of since the first interview. b) On March 10, 2020 at 5:55 p.m. he received a call from Minister Bernard Davis, asking how the investigation was going and Chief Boland told him he could not discuss it. c) After the interview last week, Chief Boland spoke with Wendy Zdebiak about whether or not an intemal RNC investigation should be initiated. They decided no at this time as they did not want to interfere with the criminal investigation. Inspector. Sue Bill is in charge of the unit that looks after intemals. d) Chief Boland confirmed with Supt. O'Reilly an email he received on March 11, 2020. Chief Boland received a call from D/M Mercer to see if someone should speak to Insp. Roche about the potential leak-and Chief Boland said no, again to protect the integrity of the investigation: e) On March 22, 2020, Chief Boland saw a Tweet from retired Staff Sergeant Boyd Merrill criticizing the RCMP management and discussing the current Covid crisi This was re-tweeted by Gambin-Walsh. Chief Boland does not believe itis related to the investigation but feels it was inappropriate to be re-tweeted by Gambin- Walsh. f) On March 22, 2020, at 09:45 a.m. at the RNC building, Chief Boland asked ‘Supt.Oates to put Didhams work phone back in his office. Chief Boland had originally requested the phone be taken for evidentiary purposes but then decided to put it back before Didham knew anything as it would tip him off-to the investigation. The phone was put back at 5:45 p.m. Sgt. Derrick Cole and others on Didhams shift were working the day and they didn’t want them to know. 9) On March 3, 2020 at 10:20 p.m, Chief Botand-received a text from Didham with an attachment. Boland could not open the attachment. The text, had an expiry date, when he clicked it after the expiry date it would not download/open and the message deleted. Wendy Zdebiak also saw there was a text message to be downloaded but could not see the attachment. 45h) He has leamed since that Ministers may receive documents the day before they officially review them and make a decision. He believes it is possible that the Routine Committee received the documents on March 3, the day before D/M Mercer told him it was going to committee. Neither him nor D/M Mercer knows for ‘sure if the documents went the day before. It is normal as the committee members review the documents prior to their committee meeting. i) He suspects Didham may have had the appointment document that night (March 3) and that is what he was sending him. Chief Boland never saw the attachment, could not open it, nor does not know what it was in relation to as there was no other message to give it context. Chief Boland just thought the timing of the text was important. j) The commissioned appointments did not get announced last Friday as planned although they are approved. k) There is an issue now where although people are promotable, they cannot be notified because of issues "surrounding this.” Boland said he could not discuss the specifics of that. : 1) Didham is stil in an Acting Inspector position in charge of Operational Support Services (traffic, communications, mounted unit, canine). He reports to Supt. Oates. He works Monday - Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. m) Chief Boland has not heard anything about the investigation internally but he believes all of the phones, including his will tel the story. 1) He is not willing to share all of his phone contents due to sensitive information unrelated, but he is willing to give anything relatéd to this investigation. ©) Chief Boland understands the magriitude of reporting this incident, especially since the government is a minority and this could potentially cause the government to fall 44)On March 31, 2020, Sgt. Palmer obtained an audio statement from RNC Supt. Ed Oates in the B Division MCU office and learned the following:?° * Tistened to this statement on April Ist, 2020, 46a) On March 5, 2020, Supt. Oates arrived at work at about 09:45 a.m. He went to his office to finalize an unrelated matter. At about 12:00 p.m. he left his office and saw Sgt. Wayne Mercer (Sgt. Mercer) standing in the doorway of Insp. Sharon Warren's office, as’ he was walking by, he thought he heard Sgt. Mercer say “congratulations”. Oates said he didn't pay much attention to it, [Later in his statement Oates clarified that the comment was directed towards him Oates then went to the washroom and when he came back he spoke to inp Warren as Sgt. Mercer was gone.] b) He asked Insp. Warren what was said and she said it was “congratulations”. She then made him aware that she was inundated with people coming to her with promotions rumours. She told him the following promotions were going to take place; Oates was being promoted to Deputy Chief, Tom Warren was being promoted to Superintendent, Andrew Warren was being promoted to Inspector. Colin McNeil was being promoted to Inspector, Luane Efford was being promoted to Inspector. He then told her that he had not been told anything but he would ask the Deputy Chief if he saw him. ¢) Around 12:30 p.m. he went to Deputy Chiefs office to speak to him. Supt.Oates asked if there was any news and that rumours were out about the promotions and it was rampant. DC Woodruff did not confirm anything and that was the end of it. d) Around 1:40 p.m, he received a call from Didham that he wanted to speak to him. ‘Shortly after that, he received a call from Chief Boland who also wanted to speak to him, First he went to Didhams office but Sgt. Cole was there so he went back to his office. When he went back to Didhams office Sgt. Cole was still there. Supt. Oates said he was free and he and Didham went to Oates office to speak. Didham said he was having some issues with something over the past couple of months, ‘one of which Didham was a witness to an internal complaint Supt. Oates was investigating. Supt. Oates said that he had been trying to clarify with Didham how the initial complaint was made as to who reached out to who. Didham became upset at this and served Supt.Oates a document. Supt. Oates told him he would not speak to him anymore about the matter unless it was audio taped. Ever since then their relationship was like a tomado as Supt. Oates was questioning Didhams credibility and the complainant's credibility. Didham said he reached out to the 479) h) Employee Assistance Program (EAP) about the matter and he wanted Supt. Oates to take notes. Didham was going to make a respectful workplace complaint and was advised to bring it to Supt. Oates attention as he was Didhams manager. Supt.Oates said "I wasn't going there” (This, was a reference to something in ‘Supt.Oates notes, Supt. Oates said he doesn't know what he meant by that notation) Didham then said “he may go further depending on how the promotions 90." Supt. Oates felt ike Didham was using this as a bargaining chip based on Supt. Oates good relationship with Chief Boland and it was if he wanted him to bring this forward. Supt.Oates believes that Didham would only make the complaint if he wasn't promoted. He told Didham that he had heard the rumours at lunch time but no one has discussed anything with him about the promotions, including his own. Supt. Oates said that typically in conversations, the unsuccessful candidates get notified then the successful candidates. ‘Supt. Oates has been in two previous competitions. There was some frustration as the promotions were taking a long time, a year. Didham said last night (March 4), he received a call from Jeff Thistle who said he was speaking with Staff Sergeant Eddie Billard who stated Didham was not going to be promoted because of Tim Hogan, a retired RNC officer. There are issues between Didham and Hogan that stem from a corruption complaint years ago that the RCMP investigated. Supt. Oates was in charge of RNC professional standards at the time but has no knowledge of the details of that investigation. Didham was the subject of complaint and he does not know what Hogan's role was in that. Didham wanted the information about Hogan brought forward and that he felt that he had done good work in his role. Didham then said "don't take it personally.” ‘Supt. Oates then went to speak to Chief Boland and DC Woodruff. Chief Boland asked him about comments he made to DC Woodruff earlier. Supt. Oates retold the story. Chief Boland did not appear very happy and did not confirm or deny any of the rumours. Supt. Oates made Chief Boland aware of the meeting with Didham and the Respectful Workplace complaint. 48i) Supt. Oates also clarified when he spoke to Insp. Warren she did not say who was not being promoted, only the rumours of who was being promoted. She did not talk about any of the officers being moved from'one position to another. i) The Saturday after the rumours, Supt. Oates received a call from Insp. Brennan who had been called by Andrew Warren and they wanted to know if any roles were changing as a result of rumours. Supt. Oates said he didn't know. Insp. Brennan then told him that Didham was in the C.B.S office on Saturday on the computer. This was weird as Didham works Monday to Friday 09:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. He does not know what he was doing. Insp. Brennan said he heard Didham had cleaned out his office. : k)_In December 2019, Didham said he wasn't sure if management was for him. Supt. Oates discussed this with him and it was resolved. 1) After the rumour incident, Didham gave Supt. Oates a one-line letter that said that he wanted to go back to Patrol, Platoon C in CBS. Supt. Oates asked Didham if he was sure he wanted Oates to bring if forward. Didham said “no, just destroy it” Supt. Oates gave it back to him instead. Supt. Oates did not make a copy of the letter as he did not know that there was an investigation ongoing at the time. There have been a few emails between Supt.Oates and Didham with respect to Didhams concerns about Hogan interfering in the process. Supt. Oates knows that Didham and Gambin-Walsh were friends from school. Supt. Oates knew that Didham would talk to Gambin-Walsh about traffic issues. m) At one time, Didham told him the Premier was resigning. Supt. Oates does not know for sure where the info came from but suspect Gambin-Walsh. Supt. Oates has never seen any documents related to the promotions. When asked about the ‘Supt. O'Reilly email complaining about the search, Supt.Oates said that he felt OReilly had not reviewed the file before complaining. n) Since the rumours began, Supt.Oates and Supt. O'Reilly had an email conversation disputing the transfer of other members. O'Reilly and Supt.Oates had always previously discussed these issues and Supt. Oates felt Supt. O'Reilly making a decision without speaking to him was “a shot at his shop”. Supt. Oates 49thinks the conflict with O'Reilly could possibly be related to the fact that both of them were competing for the same job. ©) This past weekend, Supt. Oates was taking to Sgt. Mercer about an unrelated matter when Sgt. Mercer said that people were getting “sooky” about not getting promoted. Oates told him it wasn't a priority right now due to Covid. P) Prior to the rumours, Supt.Oates was never told anything about the promotion process. His only knowledge was in relation to his own appli ion process. 4) Supt. Oates has been contemplating retirement over the last year, but not right now with the Covid going on. Since the rumours, Chief Boland told Supt.Oates that his name was submitted for recommendation for promotion, but he has-not béen told it was confirmed. r) Supt.Oates has never seen Supt. O'Reilly's email about who was promoted and transferred. s) With respect to the rumours, Oates asked Didham if he was privy to information that no one else was. Didham did not respond. This was done over email. 45)On April 1, 2020, | spoke with Corporal Jeff Ryan (Cpl. Ryan) of the RCMP Tech Crime Unit to express my concern if we were to image the phone or capture the data on the phone of Minister Gambin-Walsh. | stated my concem was we would have access or a copy of material and information that was privileged — subject to cabinet confidence. | inquired if there was a way we could limit the scope of the search. He advised me that he would take a mirror image of the phone but he could restrict himself as much as possible to isolate conversations. He cannot say with 100% certainty that he will not see something inadvertently but he assured me that only material relevant to this investigation will be disclosed to us as investigators in his report. The report will be specific. 50Conclusion 46)As stated the Appendix, Chief Boland began the promotional competition in April of 2019. The process dragged on for quite some time, Chief Boland had drafted the promotional papers with his colleagues Wendy Zdebiak and one of his managers, Kim Harding. They were so conscious of the confidentiality of this promotional paper it was never printed to paper and they maintained it on a USB stick. 47)Both Chief Boland and DC Woodruff detailed how they knew about the relationship between Didham and Minister Sherry Gambin-Walsh. Chief Boland and DC Woodruff described text messages they were aware Didham had received from Minister Sherry Gambin-Walsh, one involving the resignation of thie Premier, another conceming a vacancy at MRD that she felt Didham would be a good fit for. 48)Didham also informed DC Woodruff on one occasion, Minister Sherry Gambin—Walsh was answering questions in the House of Assembly during question period, she texted him many times as she was being questioned and he provided her information related to policy matters. Further to this, DC Woodruff stated this was unheard of and he had never known a Minister to discuss such issues with anyone other than the Chief of Police and that would be the appropriate point of contact. He had never heard of this in his 34 years of policing. 49)The inappropriate disclosure of information from Minister Sherry Gambin- Walsh to Inspector Didham dates back a year and a half. Both Chief Boland and DC Woodruff found out that Premier Dwight Ball was planning to step down as Premier through Didham approximately a year and a half ago. An official announcement regarding this was not issued publically until February 17, 2020, when he addressed the public via a video news release. But, they heard it from Didham and Didham physically showed DC Woodruff the text message from Minister Gambin- Walsh on his phone. 50)Although Chief Boland and DC Woodruff were aware of this relationship and the disclosure of information a year and a half ago, théy did not take any steps to address stthe issues as they arose with either of them and they did not tell anyone within Government unti it impacted their organization. 51) Chief Boland and DC Woodruff both say the leaking of this information has had a significant impact on the RNC. Chief Boland described promotions the leaking of this information as "devastating for morale". He.said it robbed people the opportunity to leam through due process and to address the concerns of those who were unsuccessful in a proper way. Further to this he feels that people have lost faith and trust in the process and the incident has undermined the capacity of the Chief's Office and has caused a loss of the trust in senior management. 52)The time frame from when D/M Mercer sent Chief Boland the text on March 4 and when he believes people found out is very short and only a few:hours. Insp. Roche got off the phone just before § while DC Woodruft was in his office. The Routine Committee Meeting was scheduled to take place at 5:15 p.m. As stated in this Appendix, the Routine Committee received this information prior to the meeting. 53)! am of the belief Minister Gambin-Walsh provided Didham with the cabinet papers which were protected by cabinet confidence. | believe they used their cell phones to communicate and that Minister Gambin-Walsh and Didham will have this information and past information that she has provided to him on their cell phones. | believe there is evidence on these phones to support the alleged breach of trust. 54)Minster Gambin-Walsh disclosing the confidential information submitted to the Routine Committee regarding the RNC Promotional Process which is subject to cabinet confidence, represents a serious and riarked departure from the prudent conduct expected from a sworn member of the House of Assembly. There were limited people who should have known of this information and the only way Minster Gambin- Walsh knew was through her duties as a inember of the Routine Committee. There is also the issue of offering Didham a job as the Head of MRD without a competition, she was being partial to Didham and using her position to possibly benefit Didham because of their personal relationship, She also disclosed the Premier was stepping down long before he made an announcement. | also believe itis likely the disclosure of information subject to Cabinet Confidence will continue to be leaked and this information should remain confidential. 8255)With regard to Paul Didham, | believe he committed a breach of trust by knowingly sharing the information provided to him by Minister Gambin-Walsh and undermining the processes of his organization. He was a party'to the offence and the sharing of this information which was subject to cabinet confidence was also a serious and marked departure of the conduct expected of a police officer and Acting Inspector at the RNC, a public organization. If he was aware of this information, it would be his responsibility as a member of the RNC to advise management that it had been disclosed to him, not to share it with members of the organization while working ‘especially those who were involved in the process. This single act was destructive and harmful to the RNC a public organization and to its management as they have stated. 56)! believe it is necessary to act as soon as practicable, although there is still investigation to be completed, it is crucial to seize these phone immediately and to limit the people who are aware of this investigation to protect the integrity of the investigation. If either of the subjects were to become are of this investigation they could potentially destroy evidence. However, if the phones are seized and examined there could also be information on them that could exonerate Minister Gambin-Watsh and for Paul Didham. 57)! have reasonable grounds and probable grounds for believing the information conceming the said offence will be obtained through the use of an investigative, technique, procedure or device, or doing of a thing that would, if not authorized constitute an unreasonable search or seizure in respect of @ person or persons property, and for which there is no other provision in any Act of Parliament that would provide for a warrant, authorization or order permitting the investigative technique, procedure or device to be used, or the thing to be done, to wit: a) The detention of and subsequent search of both Sheryl Gambin-Walsh and Paul Didham and the immediate area which’ may include entering any premises they are in including their private residence in order to seize any electronic devices used to communicate by way of electronic text messaging (cellular telephone); Analyze the electronic devices for call history logs, phone books, calendar data, task/to do list data, Short message system (SMS) text messages, digital 53b) °) dq) photographs, email messages, downloaded internet pages and graphics, cellular service subscriber information, and digital electronic serial numbers, are stored on a cellular telephone and any Subscriber Information Module (SIM) card. | believe obtaining the electronic devices by way of a Section 487 of the Criminal Code, Warrant to Search is not a viable method. As cellular telephones are a mobile device the place to be searched requirement would be difficult to establish and verify. Further to this Minister Gambin- Walsh and Didham reside and work in different communities, the seizure must occur simultaneously to protect the investigation and prevent one from alerting the other and itis not possible to predict if/when / where either person will be at any given time. At present, | do not know of any other provision of the Criminal Code or any other ‘Act of Parliament that can authorize police, to camy out the investigative techniques, procedures or devices, or doing things, in relation to Minister Sheryl Gambin-Walsh and Paul Didham for which the authorization is requested. | believe it is in the best interests of the administration of justice to issue this warrant. | am requesting that a General Warrant be granted authorizing a peace officer and other peace officers he/she deems necessary to assist him/her to carry out the following investigative procedures: ©, The detention and subsequent search of Sheryl Gambin-Walsh and Paul Didham and the immediate area which may include entering any premises they are in including their private residence in order to seize any electronic devices used to communicate by way of electronic messaging (cellular telephone); Analyze the electronic devices for call history logs, phone books, calendar data, tasks/ to do list data, Short Message System (SMS) text messages, digital photographs, e-mail messages, downloaded intemet pages and graphics, cellular service subscriber information, and digital electronic serial numbers, are stored on a cellular telephone and any associated Subscriber Information Module (SIM) card. | propose that a General Warrant be granted subject to the following terms and conditions: ‘Only that force which is necessary, will be used to carry out any: ‘of the investigative techniques, procedures or devices described; saWhile carrying out the investigative techniques, procedures of devices described, police will advise Sheryl Gambin-Walsh and Paul Didham of the reason for the detention, the charter of rights under Section 10(6) of the Charter of Rights and the police caution of her/his right not to say anything. While carrying out the investigative techniques, procedures or devices described, police will provide Sheryl Gambin-Walsh and Paul Didham with a copy of this General Warrant and an explanation of its contents; ‘The use of the investigative techniques, procedures or devices will take place in a location which affords as much privacy as possible; These investigative techniques, procedures or devices will be carried out in a reasonable manner, having regard for the privacy and personal dignity of Sheryl Gambin- Walsh and Paul Didham; : A report to Justice will be filed within 7 days or as soon as practicable. Nothing in this General Warrant permits police to interfere with the bodily integrity of any person. | request that a General Warrant be granted for the following time period: Between the hours of 09:00 a.m. on April 3® to 09:00 p.m. on April 17, 2020. To use the investigative techniques, procedures of devices in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. All information | am fami with, | believe to be correct and true. 35| request that a General Warrant, authorizing the investigative techniques, procedures or devices described in this Information to Obtain, be granted in accordance to the terms proposed. ‘Swom before me this 2nd day of April, 2020 at the City of St. John’s in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador. eH Corporal Lesley Deverea! Royal Canadian Mounted Police A Justice in and for the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador 36