is the RCMP Investigating Justin Trudeau?
In a recent development, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) refuted initiating an inquiry into the allegations of political meddling during the SNC-Lavalin affair.
The SNC-Lavalin scandal occurred almost four years ago and involved Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exerting pressure on a former justice minister to intervene in the prosecution of the Montreal-based engineering firm.
This denial comes in response to Democracy Watch, a Canadian democracy watchdog, claiming to possess evidence of an ongoing investigation into the matter.
Despite inquiries from the National Post throughout Monday, the RCMP chose to remain silent.
However, in a statement released on social media late in the afternoon, the RCMP clarified that it was not conducting any investigation into the allegations of political interference in the federal government’s handling of the SNC-Lavalin affair.
Justin Trudeau Obstruction of Justice
The allegations first surfaced when Duff Conacher, co-founder of Democracy Watch, filed an access-to-information request on May 25.
In response, the RCMP partially denied the request, stating that an ongoing investigation was underway, and advised Conacher to resubmit the request after the conclusion of court proceedings.
Conacher’s access-to-information request specifically sought records pertaining to all decisions made regarding the examination and subsequent investigations into the alleged obstruction of justice by Prime Minister Trudeau, former finance minister Bill Morneau, their staff members, and former Clerk of the Privy Council Michael Wernick.
These allegations revolve around claims that they exerted pressure on former Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould to intervene and stop the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin.
Could Justin Trudeau Go To Jail
When news of the SNC-Lavalin affair initially broke, early reports suggested that Justin Trudeau could face a maximum of ten years in prison.
However, the RCMP’s Facebook statement clarified the situation, saying, “In response to numerous media reports, the RCMP can confirm it is not investigating allegations of political interference in the trial of SNC-Lavalin.”
This marks the first public comment by the RCMP since 2019 when a spokesperson mentioned that they were carefully examining the matter following the federal ethics commissioner’s ruling that Prime Minister Trudeau had violated the Conflict of Interest Act.
The SNC-Lavalin affair originated in February 2015 when the RCMP filed fraud and corruption charges against the engineering firm for its involvement in business dealings in Libya.
In 2018, the Trudeau Liberals introduced legislation that allowed for remediation agreements, a provision that SNC-Lavalin had advocated for.
Later that year, Jody Wilson-Raybould, then Minister of Justice, alleged that the prime minister had asked her to find a solution for SNC-Lavalin, leading to concerns of potential political interference.
Despite SNC-Lavalin threatening to divide itself and divest from Canada, the prosecution service rejected their request for a remediation agreement.
Wilson-Raybould was subsequently replaced as justice minister by David Lametti in January 2019.
The matter was eventually resolved in December 2019, with SNC-Lavalin pleading guilty to one count of fraud and agreeing to pay a $ 280 million fine over five years, along with three years of probation.
During the summer of 2019, RCMP investigators began looking into the SNC-Lavalin affair.
However, their efforts faced obstacles as the federal government refused to lift cabinet confidentiality.
These developments were reported by The Globe and Mail in September 2019, just before the dissolution of Parliament for the upcoming federal election.
With the recent denial from the RCMP regarding an investigation into alleged political interference in the SNC-Lavalin affair, the controversy surrounding the case continues to be a contentious issue in Canadian politics.
The implications of this latest development remain uncertain, but it raises concerns about accountability and transparency in the country’s governance.
