THURSDAY,AUGUST1,2019 | THEGLOBEANDMAILO A
The RCMP commander in the
hunt for a pair of British Colum-
bians suspected in three slayings
has explained the sound of gun-
shots heard by residents of York
Landing, Man., while police were
checking out a sighting of the
teens.
In a Tuesday interview, Inspec-
tor Kevin Lewis said his officers
were not shooting at anyone.
“They needed to attract the at-
tention of the members of the
team due to problems with com-
munications,”hesaid,referringto
thesearchlastSundayforthesus-
pects, Kam McLeod and Bryer
Schmegelsky.
“In those cases there, they
needed to direct resources to
where the threat was believed to
be. That’s the way we some times
have to do business.”
Hesaidtheideaistosignalthat
policeofficersarerequiredimme-
diately at a certain location.
Despite multiple York Landing
residents saying they heard gun-
shotsafterofficersarrivedonSun-
day to search for the suspects, the
Manitoba RCMP said they had no
reportsofshotsfiredaroundYork
Landing.
Insp. Lewis acknowledged a
problem with communications,
and said it’s an occasional issue.
“It’s not a normal thing to have
happen, but it does happen,” he
said. “It did happen in York Land-
ing’s case, yes.”
In the past, there have been
questionsaboutRCMPcommuni-
cations in crisis situations.
In 2014, a gunman shot dead
three RCMP officers in Moncton
with an assault rifle. An internal
RCMP review of the Moncton kill-
ings concluded police communi-
cations were often overloaded,
unco-ordinated, absent and con-
fusing. It recommended imple-
menting better radio technology
and that every serving RCMP
membershouldbe“inpossession
of a cellular or satellite phone
(where available) and police ra-
dio while on duty.”
In the 2016, Fort McMurray,
Alta., forest fires, Mounties evac-
uating 90,000 people ran out of
radios. On top of that, their radio
channel overloaded and the force
didn’thaveabackupcommunica-
tions system. Officials in Ottawa
had sent RCMP in Alberta about
twodozenphones,buttheycould
not be used immediately. Some
phones were dead. Some were
locked. Some contained data
from their previous users.Shotsheardin
YorkLanding,
Man.,were
communication
tactic:RCMP
IANBAILEYVANCOUVERHis body was discovered on July 19 on a
road near Dease Lake, about 500 kilo-
metres southwest from the hot springs.
Over the next week, the RCMP will scale
down search efforts in northern Manitoba,
withdrawing most specialized RCMP offi-
cers and air support, Assistant Commis-
sioner Jane MacLatchy said. The military’s
aircraft have already been sent back. The
police have also dismantled their check-
stop at the intersection of roads 280 and
290.
Assistant Commissioner MacLatchy
asked the public to remain vigilant and to
contact their local police if they know any-
thing about the pair’s whereabouts. She
added she’s not surprised police haven’t
found the fugitives, noting the region is
vast and remote.
“It’s just a very tough place to find
somebody who doesn’t want to be found,”
said Assistant Commissioner MacLatchy,
who is the Manitoba commander of the
RCMP. “I am hopeful we have further de-
velopments, but at this point, this is
whereweare.”
She said the search for the homicide
suspects is not ending and a number of
tactical resources and specialized assets
will remain in the Gillam area.
“I know that today’s news is not what
the families of the victims and the com-
munities of northern Manitoba wanted to
hear,” she said. “But when searching for
people in vast, remote and rugged loca-
tions, it’s always a possibility that they’re
not going to be immediately located.”
RCMP had initially declared Mr. Schme-
gelsky and Mr. McLeod missing after their
pick-up truck was found on fire outside
Dease Lake. But after the grey Toyota
RAV4 was found on fire about 3,000 kilo-
metres away in northern Manitoba, the
police said the pair were now considered
suspects in the three deaths.
An intense manhunt began July 23, as
RCMP officers descended upon Gillam
and later plunged into the insect-laden
bush to scan the train tracks, power-line
trails and river shores for any traces of the
pair such as boot tracks, tarps or remnants
of a cookout.
Sniffer dogs, drones, helicopters and
ATVs were used. So were two military air-
craft: a Canadian Air Force CC-130H Her-
cules plane and a CP-140 Aurora outfitted
with an infrared camera and imaging-
radar systems.
But after combing through more than
11,000 square kilometres, 100-plus aban-
doned buildings and some 250 tips, Assist-
ant Commissioner MacLatchy said
Wednesday it was time to curtail the po-
lice search. At this point, the Mounties
don’t know whether Mr. Schmegelsky and
Mr. McLeod are alive or dead.
Friends since childhood, Mr. Schmegel-
sky and Mr. McLeod have been on the
move for more than two weeks since they
left Port Alberni, B.C. There have been
multiple unverified sightings of the pair
since police declared on July 23 that they
were wanted in the homicides of three
people in Northern B.C.
The latest reported sighting was on
Wednesday in Kapuskasing in Northeast-
ern Ontario. The Ontario Provincial Police
were called at 10:35 a.m. about a vehicle
with two men who appeared suspicious
driving through a construction zone. The
report, however, was not substantiated,
acting OPP Sergeant Shona Camirand
said.
“The OPP has received numerous calls
like this over the last week and they have
all been investigated and have been un-
founded,” she said.
“There have been no confirmed sight-ings of these suspects in Ontario.”
On Wednesday, police officers and a
sniffer dog returned to the site where the
Toyota RAV4 was found burning. RCMP
Inspector Kevin Lewis, the incident com-
mander, said police are revisiting areas
searched previously on the lookout for
new clues. He said they also planned to
search again the many fly-in hunter
cabins in the region.
“We’re going to treat it as if they’re still
out there, or at least try to find bodies, if
they are,” Insp. Lewis said.
Assistant Commissioner MacLatchy
said there is still a possibility the suspects
had help fleeing the area and the RCMP is
examining that prospect.
Police have gone door-to-door in Gil-
lam and Fox Lake Cree Nation, checking to
see if residents know anything about the
suspects’ whereabouts and seeking advice
about potential hiding spots.
About 1,200 residents live in Gillam and
another 500 at Fox Lake Cree Nation. The
communities are more than 700 kilo-
metres north of Winnipeg.
At Fox Lake Cree Nation on Wednesday
afternoon, the community was preparing
to make s’mores over a bonfire – a way to
bring the children out of their homes.
Many have been stuck mostly inside since
the manhunt began.
Another bonfire was planned for the
evening, with tea and bannock being
served. Crisis workers remain in the com-
munity, as do the nightly patrols by volun-
teer members.
“We’re still apprehensive,” Fox Lake res-
ident Raymond Neckoway said. “We’ll
have to try to go back to normal as much
as possible and be vigilant.”
Gillam Mayor Dwayne Forman said he
understands why police are scaling back
their search and appreciates that extra of-
ficers will remain in the community. He
expects some residents will be opposed to
the RCMP’s decision, while others will
support the move.
The mayor, as with so many others
across the country, is wondering where
the fugitives are.
“I’m simply baffled by how they are
evading capture,” he said. “Where could
they be? Nobody knows that answer.”SnifferdogswereamongtheresourcesRCMPofficersusedintheirsearchforBryerSchmegelskyandKamMcLeod.Officershavecombed
throughmorethan11,000squarekilometresand100-plusabandonedbuildings.PHOTOSBYMELISSATAIT/THEGLOBEANDMAIL
Manhunt:Mountiesdon’tknowwhethersuspectsarealive
FROMASupt. Taverner withdrew his name from
consideration in March. It was the first of
several alleged patronage appointments
that havedogged the Fordgovernment. In
June, Mr. French resigned after it emerged
that diplomatic postings in New York and
Londonhadbeenfilledbyindividualswith
personal connections to him
and his family.
Until the recent release of
the FOI records,the govern-
ment had been unable to de-
tail how much it spent on the
recruiting services as part of
Supt. Taverner’s failed ap-
pointment. At the time of the
appointment, a spokesper-
son for the Treasury Board
Secretariat–whichisinchargeoftalentac-
quisition and soliciting bids from interest-
edsearchfirms–saiditcouldnotdetailthe
cost because it was “not the ministry that
owns this contract.”
The Globe then filed an FOI request,
which was fulfilled six months later. The
government supplied a copy of the Re-
quest for Services that Odgers Berndtson
responded to when it won the contract.
Odgers Berndtson co-operated fully
with the investigation by the Integrity
Commissioner, said Jacqueline Foley, the
firm’s chief marketing officer. “Our firm
conducted the OPP Commissioner search,
like all of our assignments, with integrity
and consistent with our professional prac-
tices and standards,” Ms. Foley said.
In response to questions,
IvanaYelich,aspokesperson
for Mr. Ford, said in an e-
mail: “Executive search
firms are regularly retained
to assist in the recruitment
of new talent to the Ontario
Public Service and Broader
Public Sector.”
In an interview, New
Democrat MPP Taras Na-
tyshak, said that it appears the recruiting
firm was used to “validate” a preordained
choice from the Premier’s Office.
“That’s no respect to taxpayers’ dollars
and an affront to ... folks in the broader
public service who are appointed by due
process,” Mr. Natyshak said. “It’s taxpayers
who have to pay the bill, and in this case
it’s a $40,000 bill to Odgers to validateDoug’s chosen candidate.”
As part of the probe into Supt. Taver-
ner’s hiring, the Integrity Commissioner
interviewed the former deputy minister of
community safety, Matt Torigian, who left
the government in October, 2018, shortly
before the hiring process began.
Mr. Torigian told investigators he had a
discussion with a recruiter from Odgers,
Sal Badali, just days before he retired from
the public service. He said he encouraged
Mr. Badali to reach out to the chiefs and
deputy chiefs of the 12 largest police forces
in the province, and, according to Mr. Tori-
gian, Mr. Badali pressed him for other
names.
Mr. Torigian said he replied: “Well,
there’s one other name obviously out
there that you’re not going to get from me,
because they’re not qualified, but I’m sure
you’ve heard there’s interest in having this
person apply, too.”
Mr. Torigian said Mr. Badali replied with
a “half-chuckle” and said: “We all know
Ron is going to get an interview, and we’ll
see where it goes.”
In his interview with the Integrity Com-
missioner, Mr. Badali said he did not recall
the discussion.Taverner:‘That’snorespecttotaxpayers’dollars,’MPPsays
Itwasthefirstof
severalalleged
patronage
appointmentsthat
havedoggedthe
Fordgovernment.FROMACOLORECTAL CANCER RATES
ARE ON THE RISE AMONG
YOUNG ADULTS, DATA SHOWColorectal cancer is typically
considered a disease of aging –
most new cases are diagnosed
in people over 50. But even as
the rates decrease in older
adults, scientists have docu-
mented a worrisome trend in
the opposite direction among
patients in their 20s and 30s.
Now, data from national
cancer registries in Canada add
to the evidence that colorectal
cancer rates are rising in young-
er adults. The increases may
even be accelerating.
“We thought that this trend
would slow down or level off
after people first noticed it a
few years ago,” said Darren
Brenner, a molecular cancer
epidemiologist at the University
of Calgary and lead author of
the study, published Wednesday
in the journal JAMA Network
Open.
Between 2006 and 2015, the
last year for which figures are
available, colorectal cancer rates
increased by 3.47 per cent
among Canadian men under 50,
Dr. Brenner and his colleagues
found. And from 2010 to 2015,
rates increased by 4.45 per cent
among women under 50.
Yet colon and rectal cancers
have been steadily decreasing
among older adults in Canada
because of increased awareness
of the disease and widespread
use of screening tests such as
colonoscopies, which can iden-
tify and remove colon polyps
before cancer develops.
Over all, the risk of colorectal
cancer is still much lower in
younger adults than in older
ones. But the continuing uptick
means that millennials will
likely carry an elevated risk as
they get older.
NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICEOTTAWAThe Office of the Privacy Com-
missioner of Canada says it is investigat-
ing a data breach at Capital One that has
affected six million Canadians after re-
ceiving complaints from customers.
It says Capital One contacted the office
about a breach in which personal in-
formation, including one million social
insurance numbers, had been accessed
without authorization.
The company has said it would notify
affected individuals by letter or e-mail
next week, but would not telephone
customers. It says people receiving calls
from someone claiming to be from Cap-
ital One should not provide any informa-
tion, including account information or
social insurance numbers.
The breach also exposed the data of
roughly 100 million U.S. clients, includingabout 140,000 social security numbers
and 80,000 linked bank account numbers.
In addition to credit card application
data such as phone numbers, e-mail
addresses, dates of birth and self-reported
income, the hacker was also able to access
credit scores, credit limits and balances, as
well as fragments of transaction informa-
tion from a total of 23 days in 2016, 2017
and 2018.THECANADIANPRESSPRIVACYCOMMISSIONEROPENSCAPITALONEDATABREACHINVESTIGATION
NEWS |