Montreal police chief Philippe Pichet insists that no journalists' phones were wiretapped as part of a recent investigation, refuting claims by the reporters who said warrants had been issued permitting police to listen on their conversations.
According to a report in La Presse, the SPVM obtained warrants to wiretap the phones of columnist Patrick Lagacé and journalist Vincent Larouche.
"I was shocked when I found out they intercepted my metadata, they obtained permission to locate me anytime they wanted through my GPS," he said. "Now, let's just say I'm less shocked at what extent they will go to to try and spy on journalists."
At a press conference earlier this week, Pichet acknowledged that Lagacé’s phone was tracked via GPS and his phone records searched as part of an investigation into the source of media leaks, but said wiretapping was never discussed.
According to the La Presse report, a warrant, signed by Quebec judge Marc Bisson in May and valid for 60 days, allowed Lagacé and Larouche’s private communications to be intercepted. It’s unclear whether police did listen in on phone conversations.
The warrant included 13 other names of people who could be wiretapped, with most being police officers.
In a statement released shortly before 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, Pichet maintained that no journalists' phones were wiretapped and insisted that police "acted legally and proportionally."
"The SPVM had actually wiretapped officers who were the subject of the investigation, but no other person apart from the policemen had been the subject of electronic surveillance," he said. "Of course, anyone who contacted the police offciers could be heard in conversations."
Lagacé said Pichet's denial of wiretaps meant there are two possibilities: he either didn't know, or didn't gather all the facts, and both scenarios raise questions about the chief's judgment.
"I think Philippe Pichet doesn't understand the first thing about freedom of the press," he said. "If this story was such a huge story in this province, in this country and numerous media outlets in the world, it's because usually, in a democracy, you don't spy on journalists without a very good reason... What they were trying to solve by launching an investigation into journalistic leaks was not a national security story, it wasn't a terrorism story, it was basically people talking to journalists about something bad going on in the department of police."
On Saturday, Parti Quebecois leader Jean-Francois Lisee demanded Pichet be suspended, saying the chief is “one of the principle actors in what is poor judgment, if not an abuse of power.”
Projet Montreal public security critic Alex Norris said in light of the revelations, Pichet has lost the confidence of Montrealers and must step aside until an investigation can be completed.
"There is a flagrant contradicition between what Mr. Pichet told reporters and what was revealed this morning," he said. "There's a big difference between tracking incoming and outgoing telephone numbers and actually listening in on journalists."
- With files from The Canadian Press
