Anatomy of a Cover-Up: The Truth about the RCMP and the Nova Scotia Massacres

Anatomy of a Cover-Up: The Truth about the RCMP and the Nova Scotia Massacres

NATIONAL BESTSELLER FOLLOW-UP TO THE #1 NATIONAL BESTSELLER 22 MURDERS The truth about the deadliest criminal incident in Canadian history has remained untold—until now. Investigative journalist Paul Palango’s 22 Murders examined the April 2020 shooting spree committed by Gabriel Wortman that began in Portapique, Nova Scotia, and ended thirteen and a half hours later when Wortman was shot dead by RCMP officers. The episode left numerous serious questions in its wake—most especially why was the killer able to evade police in such limited geography for so long? Since then, the government called a public inquiry into the massacres—the Mass Casualty Commission. Though Palango unearthed a treasure trove of evidence pointing to the possibility that Wortman or someone close to him was acting as a police agent, the commission evaded all the big questions and let the RCMP off with a slap on the wrist. To this day, no one has been held accountable. In this new book, Palango continues to crack the case, delving deeper into the evidence and testimonies of the witnesses who have been ignored. Drawing on his vast experience as an investigative reporter, he has mined the thousands of pages of commission documents to reveal the wall of secrecy and deceptions constructed by the RCMP and the criminal justice system, exposing new facts that may alter the public’s perception of what really happened. A tour-de-force of reportage, Anatomy of a Cover-Up accomplishes what the commission set out to do—uncover the truth about the Nova Scotia massacres and bring long overdue justice to its victims. “A gripping and deeply unsettling exposé. Palango’s writing is urgent, raw and unflinching. For readers interested in true crime, public accountability or Canadian politics, Anatomy of a Cover-Up is essential reading.” — Ottawa Life Magazine PAUL PALANGO is a veteran investigative journalist. He started his career at the Hamilton Spectator , his hometown newspaper. In 1977, he joined the Globe and Mail as a reporter, and between 1983 and his resignation in 1990, he served successively as its sports editor, Metro editor, and, eventually, national editor. During his tenure at the Globe , Palango’s reporters swept the Centre for Investigative Reporting Awards in five consecutive years. In 1989, he accepted the Michener Award on behalf of the Globe . PREFACE There are twenty-five truths about the Nova Scotia massacres. Twenty-two of those truths have names and indisputable fact on their side. They are the people who were shot dead by Nova Scotia denturist Gabriel Wortman. On Saturday night, April 18, 2020, thirteen of them died in Portapique, some while the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were on scene trying to figure out what to do. We still don’t know the order in which they died or the precise details of many of the murders. We just know their names: Greg Blair, Jamie Blair, Lisa McCully, Corrie Ellison, Frank Gulenchyn, Dawn Madsen Gulenchyn, John Zahl, Elizabeth Joanne (Jo) Thomas, Peter Bond, Joy Bond, Aaron Tuck, Jolene Oliver and Emily Tuck. The next morning, as the Mounties were still trying to make sense of the situation, in distinctly different circumstances, nine more people were murdered: Sean McLeod, Alanna Jenkins, Tom Bagley, Lillian Campbell Hyslop, Heather O’Brien, Kristen Beaton, Heidi Stevenson, Joey Webber and Gina Goulet. The twenty-third truth is that while only three people, including Wortman’s common-law wife, Lisa Banfield, suffered non-life-threatening injuries, hundreds if not thousands were emotionally or psychologically damaged by what happened. The twenty-fourth truth is that although a handful of Mounties did indeed put their lives on the line in exceptionally trying circumstances, a few who offered to do so were not allowed to. Other Mounties, meanwhile, were anything but brave. In a profession where the preservation of life is the first priority, the Mounties saved no one who was in danger by the time they got there. It was anything but a great moment in policing. Not one Mountie’s actions would make a heroes’ highlight reel. The twenty-fifth truth is that the RCMP and its enablers in government and the justice system have not been entirely honest about what happened before, during and after the massacres. From its first comments, the RCMP attributed the actions of gunman Gabriel Wortman to the fallout from a long-standing domestic-violence environment exacerbated by paranoia over the COVID pandemic and the lockdown in Nova Scotia. This official narrative was immediately picked up by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the federal and provincial governments. During the summer of 2020, the governments reluctantly called a joint federal-provincial public inquiry, the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC), headed by three commissioners: former Nova Scotia chief justice J. Michael MacDonald, former Fredericton police chief Leanne J. Fitch and Toronto lawyer Dr. Kim Stanton. The families of the