|
Jaime
Wheeler
| Denver
Crawford
| Wilf
Hathway previous
Robert Blundell was
an operative in the sting which extracted a false confession
from Patrick Fischer.
His colleague Justin Harris
was an operative in the Wilf
Hathway sting.
Blundell was punished by the
loss of one vacation day; complaints against Harris were dropped
because the RCMP failed to act quickly enough on the complaints
of the underaged prostitutes in Prince George who alleged he
sexually assaulted them.
RCMP settles
sex-assault allegations
By JOE FRIESEN and ANDY
HOFFMAN, Golbe and Mail, Aug 4, 2004
Four female RCMP officers who say they were sexually assaulted
by one of the force's top undercover investigators and then suffered
as officials tried to cover up the details have settled a lawsuit
out of court.
The suit alleged the four women
were subjected to assaults by Sergeant Robert Blundell including
fondling, digital penetration and intercourse, sometimes in the
middle of undercover assignments. All four women and Sgt. Blundell
continue to work for the RCMP.
Neither the RCMP nor lawyers
for the women would comment on details of the settlement yesterday.
"All I can confirm is
that the case was resolved to the satisfaction of all parties,
but the terms of the agreement will remain confidential,"
RCMP spokeswoman Corporal Monique Beauchamp said.
In court documents filed last
year, the women allege that senior RCMP officers engaged in "cover-ups
of the sexual assaults" and "participated in reprisals
against the women for coming forward with their complaints, including
sexual harassment."
The suit named the Attorney-General
of Canada and 19 officers as defendants, including RCMP Commissioner
Giuliano Zaccardelli, Deputy Commissioner Beverly Busson and
Chief Superintendent Peter German.
The four women, whose identities
were not made public, worked with Sgt. Blundell on undercover
investigations in Calgary from 1994 to 1997.
At the time, sources said,
Sgt. Blundell was known as one of Canada's top undercover operatives.
The claim states he had a reputation for getting confessions
out of suspected murderers and was also held in high regard for
his training of undercover officers.
But, according to the statement
of claim, the four women were "individually and separately
sexually assaulted and harassed by Sgt. Blundell."
In one case, the documents
allege, a female officer was asked by Sgt. Blundell to act as
"window dressing" to impress a suspect in an unsolved
homicide. Sgt. Blundell planned to buy her drinks and eventually
take her home. After arriving at his hotel, though, the woman
fell asleep and woke up to find Sgt. Blundell sexually assaulting
her. When she tried to push him off, he pushed back, and continued
to assault her until he ejaculated.
No statement of defence was
ever submitted and these allegations were not proven in court.
Another officer was forced
into sexual touching while working undercover, the claim states.
The female officer was supposed to act as Sgt. Blundell's girlfriend.
As they approached their target, he "whispered into her
ear words to the following effect: 'If I touch you just go with
it and just make it look natural,' " the claim says. "[The
plaintiff] had no opportunity to respond and could not exit the
scenario without jeopardizing the situation. Blundell then introduced
[the plaintiff] to the target and while doing so put his hand
down [her] sweater and fondled her breasts."
Other allegations included
Sgt. Blundell suggesting a female officer should take off her
clothes and masturbate in his car while returning from a supposed
undercover operation, and on a separate occasion ripping open
the officer's blouse on an elevator and telling her he wanted
to be licked all over.
According to the documents,
when the women brought these incidents to their superiors, the
investigating officers asked one of them whether she realized
what "this" would mean for her boyfriend's career in
the RCMP, and whether she realized that Sgt. Blundell could lose
his job because of the complaint.
One woman also said she was
subject to "intense workplace harassment including overtly
sexual remarks and unwanted sexual touching" after making
her complaint.
The RCMP has instituted new
anti-harassment training, but has not yet put in place the changes
to its anti-harassment policy, Cpl. Beauchamp said. She attributed
the delay to the magnitude of the changes and said the new policy
should be in place soon.
Cpl. Beauchamp said the RCMP
has now provided more than 7,000 of its 22,000 employees with
a one-day course in anti-discrimination and anti-harassment training.
She said she does not know how many other harassment cases have
been brought forward within the force.
One of the four women remains
on leave because of these incidents. Sgt. Blundell was given
a reprimand and lost one vacation day as a result of an internal
investigation.
The women each asked for $750,000
in damages in the original claim but it is not known how much
they received as part of the settlement.
The RCMP praised the women
for their "personal and professional commitment" in
a press release yesterday. "These unselfish acts have enhanced
the ability of the RCMP to continue in its resolve that harassment
will not be tolerated."
Angela Byrne, a lawyer for
the four women, said: "I am pleased the RCMP has acknowledged
the courage of these four women and has recognized the important
role they have played in bringing about changes to the RCMP's
anti-harassment policy."
Andy Hoffman is a reporter
for ROBTV
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Inquiry into the malicious prosecution of David
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