The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) said that they are not investigating allegations in a letter that mentions several RCMP detachments, including the Airdrie RCMP.

"There are no ASIRT investigations into the allegations in the letter," ASIRT stated.

The letter which has made its rounds in social media groups for several months appears to have been written in late October and addressed to ASIRT. The letter requests that an investigation into the allegations outlined in the letter, the bulk of which are levelled against the Chestermere RCMP detachment.

Airdrie RCMP is only mentioned once in the letter, in which allegations allude to the detachment being involved, though no specifics were given. The letter-writer claimed that supporting documentation of the allegations would be provided, which ASIRT confirmed they also received. 

The letter was received via fax on November 6, 2023. There were no signatures at the bottom of the letter to denote who had sent or written the letter. Although it appears to be written on the City of Chestermere letterhead originating from The Office of the Mayor, ASIRT said that since their investigations are directed by the Director of Law Enforcement, they cannot take complaints directly from the public.

"We did not investigate this matter and therefore did not verify who sent the letter," ASIRT added. 

DiscoverAirdrie reached out to the City of Chestermere regarding the letter and whether it did originate from any of its offices, but in an emailed statement, officials said they could not comment on the letter as it dealt with RCMP operations, and specifically ASIRT. 

In early December, Municipal Affairs Minister, Ric McIver dismissed Chestermere Mayor Jeff Colvin, along with Councillor Mel Foat, Councillor Blaine Funk and Councillor Stephen Hanley, as well as the three Chief Administrative Officers (CAOs). The dismissal came after the province said that the city, 'failed to comply with the supervision of the official administrator and some of the minister’s directives that have been in place since March 15, 2023.'

According to a previous news release by the province, the directives were intended to, 'restore good governance to the City of Chestermere and were issued following a municipal inspection.'

"Since then, the city has continued to be managed in an irregular, improper and improvident manner. While the minister determined that the city has failed to comply with its obligations, he has also determined that the dismissal of Councillor Shannon Dean, Councillor Sandy Johal-Watt and Councillor Ritesh Narayan was not justified given their efforts to hold the council to account and attempt to move council in a more positive direction toward proper governance practices and compliance with legislation."

Minister McIver previously underlined that the directives issued by his predecessor were not onerous and represent the bare minimum that citizens ought to expect from their municipal government.

"However, after undertaking all reasonable efforts to have the city comply with its obligations, it has failed to do so. I am profoundly disappointed that it has come to this, but the people of Chestermere deserve better. This community should be able to have trust in its local elected government."

Before the dismissals, a municipal inspection was ordered by the Minister of Municipal Affairs in May 2022.

"An official administrator was appointed in September 2022 to supervise the municipality and its council."

On March 15, 2023, the minister of Municipal Affairs issued 12 binding directives through a ministerial order requiring the City of Chestermere to take action to address key areas of concern.

Assigned files to ASIRT can be seen on their website. Decisions on investigations by ASIRT can also be accessed online.

The most recent file, which is unrelated to the allegations in the letter, that ASIRT concluded, was an investigation regarding Airdrie RCMP last November. 

Send your news tips, story ideas, pictures, and videos to news@discoverairdrie.com. You can also message and follow us on Twitter: @AIR1061FM

DiscoverAirdrie encourages you to get your news directly from your trusted source by bookmarking this page and downloading the DiscoverAirdrie app. For breaking news, weather and contest alerts click here.

Related Stories