ABOVE: New video of Mayor Rob Ford sends shockwaves through city hall. Jackson Proskow reports.
TORONTO – Mayor Rob Ford says he’s “extremely” embarrassed by a new video, purchased and published by the Toronto Star, showing him in an apparent rage and shouting that he wants “10 minutes to make sure he’s dead.”
The video, recorded on an angle apparently from a cell phone, shows the mayor in a fit, slapping his legs and shouting about an unidentified person.
“When he’s dead, I’ll make sure that motherf—er… I need f—ing 10 minutes to make sure he’s dead.”
The context of the video is unknown and the mayor wouldn’t clarify except to say he was “very, very inebriated.”
But the Star reports the video may have been made in August because of a passing reference to a byelection.
WARNING: There is graphic language contained in this story and the above video of Mayor Rob Ford.
WATCH: The video of Mayor Rob Ford purchased by the Toronto Star and obtained by Global News.
Former city councillor Doug Holyday won an August 1 provincial byelection in Etobicoke, leaving his council seat vacant. Ford favoured a byelection replace him, but council voted against Ford’s wishes and appointed Peter Leon rather than hold a byelection.
The video was shot at the home of a “businessman” who supports Ford, the star reports. The mayor showed up to the house “clearly impaired.” The newspaper claims at least four people witnessed the rant.
For extensive coverage of Mayor Rob Ford, click here.
A clip was first posted by the Toronto Sun but the Star posted the full 77- second video a short time later. The Star article says the paper paid for the video but doesn’t disclose how much.
In the video, the mayor can be seen wearing a shirt and tie, pacing, gesticulating and shouting violently.
“I’m going to kill that f—king guy. I’m telling you, it’s first-degree murder,” he says.
WATCH: Mayor Rob Ford explains he was “extremely inebriated” in the video.
Within minutes of the video’s release the mayor emerged from his office at city hall to make a short statement to reporters.
“All I can say is, again, again, I’ve made mistakes. All I can do is reassure the people that… I don’t know what to say,” he said. “Obviously I was extremely, extremely inebriated.”
“I hope none of you will ever be in that state,” he told reporters.
“I saw a video. It’s extremely embarrassing. The whole world is going to see it,” he later added. It wasn’t clear whether he was referring to the video posted online Thursday or something else. “You know what? I don’t have a problem with that. But you know what? It’s extremely embarrassing.”
The video’s release comes days after the mayor admitted to smoking crack cocaine and claimed he had “nothing left to hide.”
The Star purchased the video for $5,000 from a source who filmed the video from someone else’s computer. The person with the computer was there in the room, the Star was told.
WATCH: Norm Kelly talks about Thursday meeting with Mayor Rob Ford
Asked why the paper paid $5,000 for the video, Editor Michael Cooke said:
“Because of the huge public interest both in Toronto and worldwide.
“We weren’t paying a source for information, we were purchasing a video, something newspapers and TV stations do every day. I’ve paid more for a book excerpt.
“Publisher John Cruickshank and I talked about the price and quickly decided that the crisis at City Hall made it essential to get all information relevant to Ford’s true character and views in front of Torontonians.
“This was especially crucial as the Mayor insisted he had nothing left to hide and has called us liars and maggots from the beginning when we reported on two of our journalists seeing a video that showed a clearly intoxicated mayor smoking crack cocaine.
“The mayor’s pals apparently went to extraordinary lengths to find and suppress the crack video, while all the while he was denying its existence. We feared if we didn’t grab it quick, this revealing video might disappear.”
The Star has been assured the money went to “the legal and beneficial use of a family.”
Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly, who has been quietly pressuring the mayor to step aside since a meeting on Saturday, emerged from another talk with Ford later Thursday afternoon. He said Ford “is cognizant of the situation” but wouldn’t say much else. Ford “knows what is going on.”
Earlier in the day, Kelly had said he has “unfettered access to the mayor’s office.
“He listens to me. But so far it’s been, ‘I’m staying the course.’”
Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair refused to comment on the video when asked by reporters Thursday afternoon.
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