Guergis denies cocaine allegations

OTTAWA – MP Helena Guergis "vigorously denies" all claims suggesting that she and her husband, former MP Rahim Jaffer, were photographed in the presence of prostitutes and cocaine.

Guergis’ lawyer issued a statement Thursday morning saying the allegations that prompted Prime Minister Stephen Harper to kick her out of cabinet, suspend her from caucus, and call in the police and Parliament’s ethics commissioner are "completely false."

CTV News and the Toronto Star are reporting that Guergis is being investigated by RCMP over allegations linking her to cocaine use and consorting with prostitutes. CTV and The Star named Derek Snowdy as the private investigator who passed on those allegations to Arthur Hamilton, a Toronto lawyer who acts for the Conservative Party of Canada. Hamilton told the Prime Minister’s Office.

Snowdy reached Hamilton through an unnamed Toronto MP, the Star said. But Canwest News has learned that – before, or at least at the same time that Snowdy took his Guergis allegations to the Conservatives – he had contacted Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff’s office.

Ignatieff spokesman Mario Lague said Snowdy called Ignatieff’s office after revelations surfaced that Jaffer had had meetings with Nazim Gillani, a Toronto businessman currently facing fraud charges on a separate matter. Snowdy had been investigating Gillani for an unnamed client on another matter and learned that Gillani was apparently boasting he had photographs of Guergis and Jaffer partying in the presence of prostitutes and cocaine users, the Star said.

It is not known what it was that Snowdy wished to speak to Ignatieff about.

"The call was never returned. We have no record of any email. We don’t deal with private investigators," said Lague.

The prime minister’s office was made aware of some allegations about the conduct of Guergis, who was then the minister of state for Status of Women. Within hours of that meeting, Harper fired Guergis.

"We are convinced that the allegations are serious and believable as well," Harper said Wednesday. "It’s not up to us to determine whether or not these allegations are true. It’s up to the authorities to do that, but to our mind and our opinion, there is enough credibility to give the information to the authorities."

Rubel said Thursday: "After days of unfair speculation we finally know what the allegations (against Guergis) are. More important, we know that the source of these allegations is a report from a private investigator who, apparently while presenting himself as another potential victim of a man currently facing fraud charges, was told these ridiculous ‘boasts’ in an attempt to convince the investigator to do business with him. We believe these circumstances speak for themselves.

"Ms. Guergis vigorously denies all of this man’s bizarre claims, and looks forward to helping the RCMP demonstrate that they are completely false."

Neither Snowdy nor the RCMP were available for comment.

Harper refused demands by opposition MPs Wednesday to provide any details on the allegations he referred to the RCMP.

"I have received information that involves serious allegations about the former minister’s comportment," he said. "That is why the minister resigned and the information was given to the authorities. Prior to that, I had no information along these lines."

A spokesman for Gillani said late Wednesday that he had no comment to make on the allegations. Gillani is due in court April 21 on the fraud charge.

On Wednesday, Rubel had complained that Guergis had no idea what the allegations were that she was facing.

"The prime minister’s office is not providing any information," Rubel said. "She is ready to respond and co-operate but it’s important that she not respond until she knows what the allegations are."

But Dimitri Soudas, Harper’s press secretary, suggested Rubel had been misinformed.

"The Conservative party lawyer last Friday – the day that Ms. Guergis resigned – spoke with Ms. Guergis and informed her of the allegations the Prime Minister’s Office referred to (the) ethics commissioner and the RCMP," Soudas said.

Jaffer was arrested north of Toronto on Sept. 10, 2009, on charges of possession of cocaine and drunk driving. Those charges were dismissed and Jaffer pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of careless driving. Rubel represented Jaffer in that matter.

The Toronto Star reported last week that Jaffer was arrested on Sept. 10 after what the paper called a "booze-soaked" dinner at a downtown Toronto steak house. The guests at that dinner, according to the Star, included three "busty hookers," Jaffer, Gillani and others. The Star said that, at that dinner, Jaffer boasted to Gillani about his connections with Conservative government and that those connections could help Gillani tap into government programs.

After the Star published the account of that dinner, Jaffer’s company issued a statement saying the meeting between Jaffer and Gillani had been "mischaracterized" and that it would pursue legal action against the Star.

In a statement e-mailed to several reporters Wednesday morning, Guergis said, "I’m sure you can appreciate it is very difficult to answer allegations based on innuendo from anonymous sources. Nevertheless, I intend to defend myself to the fullest extent to ensure that the record is set straight."

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Separately, the opposition tried to turn up the heat on Jaffer, suggesting he may have violated the federal Lobbying Act.

Rubel said Jaffer is not under any investigation.

Two Conservative MPs – Environment Minister Jim Prentice and Fort McMurray MP Brian Jean – confirmed that Jaffer approached them last year asking for information about federal grants for "green" projects.

Jaffer was not a registered lobbyist.

The Liberals, in the House of Commons, said Jaffer met with Jean on Sept. 3 to discuss some projects on which his company, Green Power Generation Inc., was working. The Liberals also said that later that evening, Jaffer had dinner with Infrastructure Minister John Baird, who was responsible for administering billions of dollars in "green" funds.

A House of Commons committee Wednesday agreed to subpoena Jaffer, his business partner, Guergis, two cabinet ministers and several others to examine what Jaffer and his company were doing.

Jaffer’s company never received any money. Jean said he turned down the projects after reviewing them and Baird told the House of Commons he never discussed Jaffer’s business with him at that meeting or at any other time.

A week after the Sept. 3 dinner with Baird, Jaffer was arrested and, according to the Toronto Star, had been boasting to potential business associates that he could use his connections to secure government funds.

Jaffer’s personal website said he had joined Green Power Generation to play "a crucial role in business development and marketing through his countless relationships developed from his former career as a parliamentarian."

His website also said he "provides the company with business expertise in industry financing in order to help them secure support from the Canadian government and to obtain contracts abroad."

The opposition Liberals have asked the federal lobbying commissioner to investigate whether Jaffer, who was not registered as a lobbyist, had violated the Lobbying Act.

Lobbyists interviewed by Canwest News Service said it is not clear if Jaffer and Glemaud ought to have been registered before speaking to Prentice or Jean.

The Lobbying Act requires that anyone speaking to any MP about securing funding for a business must register with the commissioner of lobbyists. Failure to do so can result in substantial fines or imprisonment.

The Lobbying Act puts the onus on the lobbyist, not the MP, to register and to report any meetings with public-officer holders.

"There was no lobbying ever involved," said Patrick Glemaud, Jaffer’s business partner. "We never collected any money. We have no contract whatsoever."

In a letter to the lobbying commissioner, Glemaud rejected the allegations made by the Liberals about him and his company and vowed to co-operate with any investigation.

"The allegations raised by the Liberal party . . . are false and inaccurate, and are simply the result of ongoing political machinations," Glemaud wrote to the commissioner.

Glemaud, a former Conservative candidate, spent eight years as a lawyer at the federal Justice Department.

With files from Mike De Souza