Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander is confronting serious allegations that, while still a senior officer in the Police Service, he allegedly met with incarcerated gang leaders just before entering politics. The claim comes from prison supervisor Garth Guada, currently detained under the State of Emergency for allegedly assisting a gang, who, through his lawyer, points the finger directly at the Minister.
But Minister Alexander insists that accusation is far from the truth.
00:00Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander responds to accusations of secretly meeting with incarcerated alleged gang leaders to assist in launching his political career.
00:12Today, Minister Alexander is outrightly rejecting those claims.
00:17This is the first time I'm hearing of this here.
00:20This is the first time you're hearing about these allegations?
00:22Marlon, I have received no documents. Let me tell you this. I have received no documents with respect to that.
00:27What I have in my possession is what a member of the media sent to me.
00:33You see? I await.
00:37But however, those allegations, Mr. Kinsley, is as far away from the truth as humanly possible.
00:44Alexander also dismisses claims made by the attorney for now detained prison supervisor, Garth Gwada,
00:51that he was targeted after he reported Alexander's alleged clandestine meetings with inmates to senior prison and police officials.
01:01If you see what clandestine means, it means that you are in some kind of covert situation.
01:07How it could be covert operations when we applied to the commissioner,
01:12the commissioner would have communicated with the prison commissioner and that's how the dialogue took place.
01:17And there was a senior police officer there. I was not the senior police officer.
01:22At all times, Mr. Alexander?
01:24Only once I went.
01:25Because they speak about a series of meetings.
01:28That is why the attorney, that is why it has reached this level where there would be legal action.
01:33Minister Alexander maintains there is nothing unusual or improper about a police officer meeting with anyone,
01:41including incarcerated individuals.
01:44He explains that it is standard procedure for officers to interview persons,
01:49whether behind bars or not, when gathering information on criminal activity.
01:54The minister suggests, however, that other factors may be at play in these allegations.
01:59It is the first time in the history of Toronto, I saw members of the government, well, the opposition,
02:09making claims about visiting prisoner at the cell or at the jail.
02:16This is, this is, something is wrong with this.
02:18So this is a common practice.
02:19Mr. Hopkinson, a police officer can interview anybody who he believed that useful information could be obtained.
02:26How, how, how, how, how does that, but then again, the rats among rattlesnakes.
02:35The opposition People's National Movement has called for a full probe into the alleged meetings.
02:41Meanwhile, Minister Alexander has assembled his legal team and warns that he will be pursuing litigation in response to the allegations.
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