Senator Mike Duffy and Nigel Wright Accused of Bribery, Fraud and Breach of Trust
Senator Mike Duffy and Nigel Wright are accused of bribery and fraud by the RCMP.
Mr Wright, who was an extremely close associate of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, is also accused of breach of trust. The same allegations are there against Sen Duffy as well. The RCMP document is formally known as a mode of "information to obtain a production order." The RCMP affirms the allegations after consulting hundreds of email communications among the people who are involved in the scam.
The investigators at the RCMP are convinced that they are now aware of the actual circumstances under which the funds were exchanged. They claim that the payment was made to hush up a controversy on behalf of the government regarding the housing expenses of Sen Duffy.
According to the RCMP document, Mr Wright is accused of paying a cheque of $90,000 to Sen Duffy for conferring an advantage on him without the written consent of the head of the branch of government. RCMP Cpl Greg Horton insists that it was a breach of trust. The breach is against a section of the Criminal Code, CTV News reports. Mr Wright is accused of a criminal act for the very first time.
Cpl Horton informed that Mr Wright made the corrupt offer to the member of the Parliament between Feb 6 and March 28. Offering any member of Parliament any valuable consideration like monetary benefits for doing or omitting something is against the Canadian Criminal Code.
Mr Harper informed the House of Commons on Tuesday that Mr Wright was being investigated by the RCMP. He also informed that he had not been aware of the fact that the Prime Minister's Office was under investigation. The Mounties, on the other hand, neither confirmed nor declined that Mr Wright was under investigation.
The RCMP filed the document in an Ottawa court on Nov 20.