2023-11-23 15:22:03
Since it broke, the affair has shaken the country’s intelligence community. A former senior Canadian police official was found guilty on Wednesday of transmitting confidential information about Canada and allied countries for the benefit of criminal organizations.
Four counts
Cameron Ortis was the director general of the National Intelligence Coordination Center of the RCMP (federal police) until his arrest in September 2020. He was accused of having abused his position by providing sensitive information about Canada but also on the other member states of the so-called Five Eyes alliance, which includes the United States, Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand.
An Ottawa court found Cameron Ortis guilty of, among other things, four counts of disclosing and attempting to sell sensitive information. He was also convicted of unauthorized use of a computer and breach of trust. His sentence is due to be handed down on January 11 and 12. The prosecution will ask for “a very long prison sentence,” said prosecutor Judy Kliewer. The penalties for each of the six charges range from 5 to 14 years.
“A serious threat” according to the police officer
According to the prosecution, Cameron Ortis attempted to sell information to people linked to money laundering schemes on behalf of organizations classified as terrorist by Canada. The defense attempted to portray Cameron Ortis as a patriot and dedicated police officer who acted to confront “a serious threat” to Canada.
Both the prosecution and the defense agreed that he sought to sell secrets to four people targeted by police investigations, including Vincent Ramos, chief executive of a Canadian company that supplied encrypted cell phones to groups criminals. Cameron Ortis is the first to be targeted by a lawsuit in Canada under the Protection of Information Act.
#intelligence #official #guilty #leaking #classified #information