If the inmates on Unit 8F had any doubt why they had just been subjected to a violent, mass strip search by the jail’s internal riot squad days after an inmate on a different wing punched a guard, one of the leaders of the riot squad made it clear to them.
“There will be no more assaults,†said Correctional Officer Jason Martell, standing in front of a phalanx of heavily armoured guards as he addressed a group of Maplehurst inmates, now locked back in their cells. “We will come back and strike you. We will do this all week. Do you hear me? All week.â€
Martell’s warning is one of the only pieces of video with audio that the province’s internal investigators were able to access from the December 2023 crackdown on inmates.
There should be hours of audio-video footage covering the entirety of the two-day operation at the Milton jail. But jail officials told investigators most of the footage was lost due to “technical†issues with the hand-held video camera used by the riot squad, known officially as the Institutional Crisis Intervention Team (ICIT).
The province’s internal investigation of the incident, which the Star obtained through a court order, includes allegations that some video footage was destroyed to dispose of incriminating evidence. The ministry’s investigators were “unable to substantiate†those allegations.
MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam
Richard Lautens ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ StarThe fact the government’s investigation of its own jail wasn’t able to confirm or deny whether evidence was destroyed is among the reasons there are growing calls for a more thorough probe into what happened at Maplehurst Correctional Complex on Dec. 22-23, 2023, when nearly 200 inmates were subject to a brutal collective punishment.
Calls for independent inquiry
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association and the opposition NDP have both called on the province to launch an independent inquiry that would publicly report its findings.
The allegations are “too egregious for us not to have a third-party, independent reviewer,†said MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam, one of the NDP’s justice critics. “A public inquiry will be able to shine a light on these matters.â€
Solicitor General Michael Kerzner, who oversees the government ministry responsible for provincial jails, has declined repeated interview requests, including for this story.
Under questioning from Wong-Tam in the legislature last week, Kerzner repeated that he can’t comment on what happened at Maplehurst because it remains “under investigation.â€
The ministry has produced two internal investigation reports into the Maplehurst incident. The first investigation concluded last October and found widespread institutional failure at the jail, from the superintendent down to rank-and-file guards. It said the ICIT deployment was “unnecessary, excessive†and “not proportionate†to the threat posed by inmates.
The second investigation, which focused more narrowly on the actions of ICIT officers, was concluded in April. It found, among other things, that several officers engaged in a “code of silence†to protect guards who had used excessive force.
Given that both internal investigations have concluded, it’s not clear what Kerzner means when he says the incident remains “under investigation.†His office would not clarify when asked directly.
Solicitor General Michael Kerzner and Premier Doug Ford have avoided answering questions about the incident at Maplehurst jail. Â
Chris Young The Canadian PressIn an interview, Wong-Tam said Kerzner has had the findings from both of the ministry’s investigations for months and he hasn’t made any public statement about the incident or what his ministry has done about it.
“How can I trust the Solicitor General to fix the prisons and end the violence when he’s unwilling to even acknowledge that there’s a problem?â€
Guards were supposed to film what happened in cells
The Maplehurst incident has compromised more than 30 criminal prosecutions, according to a recent Star analysis, as inmates seek to have their charges stayed or sentences reduced because the jail violated their Charter rights.
The Star published some surveillance camera footage of the incident earlier this year after it was made an exhibit in a criminal case. That video does not include audio, nor does it show anything that occurs inside the cells, where some inmates say they were beaten and pepper sprayed.
The ÎÚÑ»´«Ã½ Star obtained security camera footage from inside Maplehurst Correctional Complex. Over two days in December 2023, correctional officers carried out a coordinated collective punishment of nearly 200 inmates in what has been described by a judge as a “gross display of power†that violated inmates’ rights.
Every ICIT operation is supposed to have an officer assigned to use a hand-held camera to record audio and video of what occurs in the cells, including any contact with inmates.
That didn’t happen in this incident. The officers instead placed the camera in the corner of the wing or hallway in which they were working, contrary to policy. But even that footage is almost entirely unavailable. Only about an hour of video from the hand-held camera was turned over to the ministry’s investigators, according to the internal reports.
Two Maplehurst staff members, Correctional Officer Stuart Wilson and former Deputy Superintendent Hediye Wilson — who, according to the report, are married — both told ministry investigators that Deputy Superintendent Pamela Fernandes told them, in separate conversations, that video from the hand-held camera had been downloaded and viewed, but unspecified other jail staff “got rid of†the footage.
Fernandes was also interviewed by ministry investigators, but the summary of her interview does not include any response to the allegations. It’s unclear if she was asked about them. Several sentences of her interview summary are redacted from the copies of the reports the Star obtained from a Brampton court after they were filed as exhibits.
None of the correctional officials named in this story responded to requests for comment.
The report notes that several ICIT members told investigators there were “historical and ongoing issues†with the hand-held camera.
The ministry launched its investigation into the violent incident one day after the Star sent questions about it to Ontario’s solicitor general.
The ministry launched its investigation into the violent incident one day after the Star sent questions about it to Ontario’s solicitor general.
“They described occasions where the cameras appear to be fully operational but were not,†investigators wrote. “A malfunctioning camera might not be detected until they try to download the footage.â€
Ultimately investigators concluded that although a “significant amount†of footage was not available, they were “unable to substantiate†that anyone “got rid of†it.
Due to the lack of audio, investigators also “could not substantiate†allegations that superintendent Winston Wong made “inappropriate comments†to inmates, including that he allegedly said, “Welcome to Wong-tanamo Bay†to inmates as they sat in their underwear with their hands zip-tied. (Wong has denied he ever used the phrase.)
Demar Kemar Hewitt, executive director of the Black Legal Action Centre, said it’s not realistic to expect the province to launch an independent investigation, but he said he does think the ministry needs to conduct a “deeper inquiry,†given the allegations in the internal reports.
“It’s not sufficient to say, ‘We could not substantiate,†Hewitt said.
Maplehurst ‘impeded’ investigation
The ministry’s investigators also noted that Maplehurst “impeded†their investigation by not providing some records, including inmate statements and duty notebooks, despite “numerous†requests.
One staff member told investigators she believed inmate statements may have been shredded.
At a news conference in April, Premier Doug Ford would not say whether he had watched video of the Maplehurst incident, deferring to Kerzner, who also didn’t answer.
“When it comes to our expectations of the professional conduct of everyone that keeps Ontario safe, it’s simple,†Kerzner said. “They’ll maintain the highest standard of professional conduct and when they don’t there’ll be consequences.â€
Neither he, nor his ministry, have said what consequences anyone at Maplehurst has faced.
