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Police photographed Mayor Rob Ford in multiple secret meetings with an alleged drug dealer, documents released Thursday morning say.
Mayor Rob Ford was the target of a police investigation that witnessed him taking part in more than 100 meetings with known drug dealer Alexander Sandro Lisi, according to a police document filed in court.
Multiple police surveillance photographs that pinpoint Ford or his assistant with Lisi have been released.
Three copies of the now infamous photo of Rob Ford standing in front of 15 Windsor Road with Anthony Smith, Monir Kasim and Mohammad Khattak are contained in the documents. The file also includes a picture of the garage door alone on which police have circled recognizable markings in the photo featuring Ford.
The details of an extensive police investigation into Ford’s drug activities come six months after two Toronto Star reporters saw a video showing the mayor, obviously impaired, smoking what appears to be crack cocaine and making homophobic and racist slurs.
The information in the Star and Gawker about Ford allegedly smoking crack cocaine and making homophobic and racist remarks was a key part of the probe.
In a heavily censored portion of the document, police said that the day after the world learned news of the video that appeared to show Ford smoking crack cocaine, top homicide detective Sgt. Gary Giroux was assigned to “investigate the existence of a cellular phone containing a video of Ford smoking crack cocaine.”
On June 28, Toronto police Detective Shertzer and Detective Constable Davey interviewed a former member of Ford's staff, Chris Fickel.
According to the documents, Fickel told police that the mayor and Lisi spent a lot of time together until “media release events [crack video scandal].”
“Fickel does not know where the mayor got marijuana from but has heard that 'Sandro' may be the person who provides the mayor with marihuana and possibly cocaine.”
Fickel told investigators that Ford met Lisi through Don Bosco football coach Payman Abdoodowleh, a man with numerous convictions including three assault convictions, a break and enter and assautl with a weapon.
The former staffer added that Aboodowleh “said that he was mad at Lisi because he was fueling the mayor’s drug abuse.”
Ford emerged from his home around 9:45 a.m. and walked toward waiting reporters and photographers yelling “Get off my driveway,” before getting into his SUV and driving away.
“What don't you understand? Get off my property,” Ford said as the assembled journalists moved back to the sidewalk.
Ford only said “Thank you” in response to questions about whether he is the focus of a police drug investigation into Lisi.
As the journalists backed onto the sidewalk, Ford moved within inches of one photographer, yelling in his face, “Get off my property.”
Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair will make an announcement about Project Brazen 2 — the investigation launched to investigate allegations about Ford that resulted in the arrest of Lisi. The announcement was made just moments after a search warrant related to the investigation was released to the public.
For Ford, the tough campaigner who leads Ford Nation, it remains to be seen whether the fact that police surveillance teams spent the summer watching him consort with drug and weapons dealers will have an impact on the former Scarlett Heights football player’s popularity. Olivia Chow, John Tory, Karen Stintz, and other potential mayoral candidates are waiting in the wings. Ford, who proudly says he has never given up on anything, has warned the election will be a “bloodbath” and that his fellow candidates will “bring up everything.”
The information to obtain the search warrant will provide Ford critics with much to discuss, everything from allegations of drug purchase and use, to connections to Toronto’s underworld to allegations of domestic abuse.
It all began with news of a video shot somewhere near the Dixon Rd. apartments.
Ford is pictured alone in the video, shot on a drug dealer’s iPhone. A voice off camera goads the mayor into making comments. Justin Trudeau’s name is mentioned, and Ford calls him a “fag.” Who the off camera person is, we still do not know. People have speculated Sandro Lisi or Dave Price, but neither man has responded to questions. The use of Trudeau’s name gives a hint to timing of the video, which is also still a mystery. Trudeau was in the news for the Patrick Brazeau boxing match in early 2012, and in the news in early fall 2012 for his leadership battle.
Intensely loyal to family and close friends, Ford has surrounded himself with a group of yes man who are equally loyal. When Lisi was arrested Ford made a point of saying he does not “throw my friends under the bus.”But it is a small group, and it is unclear from Wednesday’s court hearing if Lisi is still a Ford ally.
What is clear is that Ford and Lisi spend, or spent, a terrific amount of time together. They met four times a week outside Lisi’s home just east of the Dixon Rd. apartments that were the epicentre of the Project Traveller guns and drugs raids. We now know that Lisi and Mohamed Siad, who wanted to sell the crack video, were close. Did Siad supply drugs to Lisi? That was likely a question police tried to answer.
Interactive graphic: Ford players, the story so far
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Click here to see the links
We also know that a six man Toronto police “spin team” spent hundreds of hours watching and following Lisi and Ford. They used cameras mounted on telephone poles, tracking devices on cars, listening devices and even a Cessna airplane flying low over Etobicoke, so low that people the Star interviewed said there was no doubt the cops were watching.
Lisi displayed countersurveillance techniques (frequently stopping his car, turning into random parking lots and driving the other way, etc.) while police followed him. On many occasions they followed him to meetings with Ford in parks. Detectives searched the area after and found empty vodka bottles.
After Ford and Lisi met in person, detectives noticed a pattern. Later in the day, Ford, on his drive home, stopped in at the Esso at Edenbridge Rd. and Scarlett Rd., just a few doors east of the Ford home. While Ford was in the Esso station, which houses his favourite Tim Horton’s, Lisi would drive up in his Range Rover and place a package into Ford’s Escalade, then drive off.
The Range Rover itself is an interesting story. It is owned by a former drug client, now straight, of Lisi’s. In return for cash and covering the monthly payments, the man leased the Range Rover for Lisi and not too long ago arranged to get him a new set of plates “which I need because of all this Ford s---.”
Lisi is a serial woman abuser, convicted several times of harassing or threatening women and ordered to stay away. Ford has said he was “shocked” to learn Lisi had any problems, despite having written a letter on Lisi’s behalf to help with his most recent case, and who himself was involved in apparent drug deals with Lisi.
Despite witnessing dozens and dozens of interactions between Ford and Lisi, officers never once stepped in to make an arrest. As a result, police lack direct evidence that what Ford and Lisi were trading those many days were drugs and money.
With files from Robyn Doolittle and Kenyon Wallace
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Police photographed Mayor Rob Ford in multiple secret meetings with an alleged drug dealer, documents released Thursday morning say.
Mayor Rob Ford was the target of a police investigation that witnessed him taking part in more than 100 meetings with known drug dealer Alexander Sandro Lisi, according to a police document filed in court.
Multiple police surveillance photographs that pinpoint Ford or his assistant with Lisi have been released.
Three copies of the now infamous photo of Rob Ford standing in front of 15 Windsor Road with Anthony Smith, Monir Kasim and Mohammad Khattak are contained in the documents. The file also includes a picture of the garage door alone on which police have circled recognizable markings in the photo featuring Ford.
The details of an extensive police investigation into Ford’s drug activities come six months after two Toronto Star reporters saw a video showing the mayor, obviously impaired, smoking what appears to be crack cocaine and making homophobic and racist slurs.
The information in the Star and Gawker about Ford allegedly smoking crack cocaine and making homophobic and racist remarks was a key part of the probe.
In a heavily censored portion of the document, police said that the day after the world learned news of the video that appeared to show Ford smoking crack cocaine, top homicide detective Sgt. Gary Giroux was assigned to “investigate the existence of a cellular phone containing a video of Ford smoking crack cocaine.”
On June 28, Toronto police Detective Shertzer and Detective Constable Davey interviewed a former member of Ford's staff, Chris Fickel.
According to the documents, Fickel told police that the mayor and Lisi spent a lot of time together until “media release events [crack video scandal].”
“Fickel does not know where the mayor got marijuana from but has heard that 'Sandro' may be the person who provides the mayor with marihuana and possibly cocaine.”
Fickel told investigators that Ford met Lisi through Don Bosco football coach Payman Abdoodowleh, a man with numerous convictions including three assault convictions, a break and enter and assautl with a weapon.
The former staffer added that Aboodowleh “said that he was mad at Lisi because he was fueling the mayor’s drug abuse.”
Ford emerged from his home around 9:45 a.m. and walked toward waiting reporters and photographers yelling “Get off my driveway,” before getting into his SUV and driving away.
“What don't you understand? Get off my property,” Ford said as the assembled journalists moved back to the sidewalk.
Ford only said “Thank you” in response to questions about whether he is the focus of a police drug investigation into Lisi.
As the journalists backed onto the sidewalk, Ford moved within inches of one photographer, yelling in his face, “Get off my property.”
Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair will make an announcement about Project Brazen 2 — the investigation launched to investigate allegations about Ford that resulted in the arrest of Lisi. The announcement was made just moments after a search warrant related to the investigation was released to the public.
For Ford, the tough campaigner who leads Ford Nation, it remains to be seen whether the fact that police surveillance teams spent the summer watching him consort with drug and weapons dealers will have an impact on the former Scarlett Heights football player’s popularity. Olivia Chow, John Tory, Karen Stintz, and other potential mayoral candidates are waiting in the wings. Ford, who proudly says he has never given up on anything, has warned the election will be a “bloodbath” and that his fellow candidates will “bring up everything.”
The information to obtain the search warrant will provide Ford critics with much to discuss, everything from allegations of drug purchase and use, to connections to Toronto’s underworld to allegations of domestic abuse.
It all began with news of a video shot somewhere near the Dixon Rd. apartments.
Ford is pictured alone in the video, shot on a drug dealer’s iPhone. A voice off camera goads the mayor into making comments. Justin Trudeau’s name is mentioned, and Ford calls him a “fag.” Who the off camera person is, we still do not know. People have speculated Sandro Lisi or Dave Price, but neither man has responded to questions. The use of Trudeau’s name gives a hint to timing of the video, which is also still a mystery. Trudeau was in the news for the Patrick Brazeau boxing match in early 2012, and in the news in early fall 2012 for his leadership battle.
Intensely loyal to family and close friends, Ford has surrounded himself with a group of yes man who are equally loyal. When Lisi was arrested Ford made a point of saying he does not “throw my friends under the bus.”But it is a small group, and it is unclear from Wednesday’s court hearing if Lisi is still a Ford ally.
What is clear is that Ford and Lisi spend, or spent, a terrific amount of time together. They met four times a week outside Lisi’s home just east of the Dixon Rd. apartments that were the epicentre of the Project Traveller guns and drugs raids. We now know that Lisi and Mohamed Siad, who wanted to sell the crack video, were close. Did Siad supply drugs to Lisi? That was likely a question police tried to answer.
Interactive graphic: Ford players, the story so far
Click here to see the links
We also know that a six man Toronto police “spin team” spent hundreds of hours watching and following Lisi and Ford. They used cameras mounted on telephone poles, tracking devices on cars, listening devices and even a Cessna airplane flying low over Etobicoke, so low that people the Star interviewed said there was no doubt the cops were watching.
Lisi displayed countersurveillance techniques (frequently stopping his car, turning into random parking lots and driving the other way, etc.) while police followed him. On many occasions they followed him to meetings with Ford in parks. Detectives searched the area after and found empty vodka bottles.
After Ford and Lisi met in person, detectives noticed a pattern. Later in the day, Ford, on his drive home, stopped in at the Esso at Edenbridge Rd. and Scarlett Rd., just a few doors east of the Ford home. While Ford was in the Esso station, which houses his favourite Tim Horton’s, Lisi would drive up in his Range Rover and place a package into Ford’s Escalade, then drive off.
The Range Rover itself is an interesting story. It is owned by a former drug client, now straight, of Lisi’s. In return for cash and covering the monthly payments, the man leased the Range Rover for Lisi and not too long ago arranged to get him a new set of plates “which I need because of all this Ford s---.”
Lisi is a serial woman abuser, convicted several times of harassing or threatening women and ordered to stay away. Ford has said he was “shocked” to learn Lisi had any problems, despite having written a letter on Lisi’s behalf to help with his most recent case, and who himself was involved in apparent drug deals with Lisi.
Despite witnessing dozens and dozens of interactions between Ford and Lisi, officers never once stepped in to make an arrest. As a result, police lack direct evidence that what Ford and Lisi were trading those many days were drugs and money.
With files from Robyn Doolittle and Kenyon Wallace