Garry Breitkreuz, M.P.
Yorkton-Melville		 News Release

For Immediate Delivery

April 27, 1999

RCMP NOW ADMIT THEY HAD FOUR SNIPERS ON THE HILL DURING GUN LAW PROTEST

"Documents prove officers had four .308 rifles and seventeen sub-machine guns on the Hill that day."

Ottawa – Today, Garry Breitkreuz, MP for Yorkton-Melville, released RCMP documents listing the firearms that were signed out on the day of the Fed-Up II Rally on Parliament Hill last September 22nd. The documents verify that RCMP officers signed out the following firearms for security on Parliament Hill that day: Four (4) .308 rifles and seventeen (17) – MP5, H&K sub-machine guns. In addition to these firearms, ten (10) Emergency Response Team (ERT) members had their special SIG 9 MM handguns and all regular RCMP officers had their standard issue side arms.

"During the rally everyone was talking about the snipers on the roof-tops of the Parliament buildings. While many were a little surprized at the display of firepower for a peaceful demonstration, I thought it was probably standard operating procedure for any rally with such a huge attendance," said Breitkreuz.

"Then I read a quote from RCMP Inspector Al Nause in the paper the next day and he was denying that there were snipers on the rooftops. Inspector Nause, the man The Ottawa Citizen said was in charge of security during the anti-Bill C-68 (The Firearms Act) protest, was reported to have said, "When someone has binoculars we don’t normally call them a sniper. We call them observers." (The Ottawa Citizen, "Shooting down the conspiracy myth" by Ron Corbett, page A3, September 23, 1998). "Yes, the RCMP documents show that the ERT officers with the .308 rifles were also issued with binoculars that day," clarified Breitkreuz.

"Following the report in the newspaper, many firearms experts came forward willing to testify in court to what they saw. I even received a picture of a police officer carrying a rifle case off one of the Parliament Hill buildings. Based on this evidence, I filed an Access to Information Request with the RCMP asking for copies of all documents related to the numbers and types of firearms signed out by police officers assigned to security on Parliament Hill on the day of the rally," explained Breitkreuz.

Breitkreuz notified The Ottawa Citizen of their mistake on April 21st and had the documents hand delivered to the Managing Editor on Friday, April 23rd. "Now that we have the documented proof, what we’re left with is four unanswered questions: (1) Why did RCMP Inspector Nause make the statements he did to a reporter when the Operational Plan he signed included details of the ten Emergency Response Team members? (2) Why did The Ottawa Citizen reporter take the word of one RCMP Inspector over the word of many honest, peaceful people attending the rally? (3) Why did the RCMP not correct the story as soon as it appeared in The Ottawa Citizen? And finally, (4) Is it standard operating procedure for the RCMP to have sniper rifles and machine guns at peaceful rallies on Parliament Hill or is this type of welcome reserved only for law-abiding, responsible firearm owners?" asked Breitkreuz. "It’s time for the RCMP and The Ottawa Citizen to tell Canadians the truth."

-30-

For more information, please call:

Yorkton Office: (306) 782-3309
Ottawa Office: (613) 992-4394
e-mail: breitg0@parl.gc.ca

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION

By Garry Breitkreuz, MP – April 26, 1999

THE OTTAWA CITIZEN QUOTE

The Ottawa Citizen, "Shooting down the conspiracy myth" by Ron Corbett, page A3, September 23, 1998. Here are the key quotes from the article: "I tracked down RCMP Inspector Al Nause, the man in charge of security on the Hill for yesterday's protest, and put the questions to him. Do you have snipers on the East Block and on rooftops along Wellington Street? "No, we don't," said Insp. Nause. "When someone has binoculars we don't normally call them a sniper. We call them observers. Who told you they were snipers? asked Insp. Nause. "Just about everyone." The inspector laughed. Offered to bring me up to the roof to see for myself. Perhaps I should have, just to confirm the story completely, although I took him at his word. Gutless journalist, perhaps."

KEY RESULTS OF RCMP ACCESS REQUEST

Here are the key results of an Access to Information Request from the RCMP with documents dated April 16, 1999. The documents verify that RCMP officers signed out the following firearms for security on Parliament Hill that day: Four (4) .308 rifles issued to RCMP Emergency Response Team members and seventeen (17) - MP5, H&K sub-machine guns issued to 10 members of the Embassy and Diplomatic Protection Section, 4 members of the Parliament Hill Detachment and 3 members of the Emergency Response Team.

OTHER SUPPORTING EVIDENCE - PHOTOS

(1) We have expert firearm witnesses who attended the rally that are willing to testify in court that they observed officers with rifles on rooftops of the Parliament buildings.

(2) We have pictures (click here and here - note that the photos are large downloads) of a RCMP Emergency Response Team member on the rooftop of the Parliament building carrying a rifle case.  (Higher resolution versions available on request)

RCMP’S DESCRIPTION OF FIREARMS

  1. The ERT [Emergency Response Team] .308 rifle is custom made here in the Armourer shop. We use Winchester Model 70 rifle actions. We mate the receiver to custom barrel, fibreglass stock, custom scope base and a Leupold Vari – x3 Police scope.
  2. Heckler and Koch, Model MP5A3 submachine gun, 9mm x 19 calibre with a selection lever for semi-automatic fire only, a multipurpose carrying sling, two 15 round and one 30 round magazines. Barrel Length – 8.85 inches (325 mm), Stock - Retractable butt stock, Sights – Dioptre-Rotary rear sight, adjustable for windage and elevation, rigid front sight.
  3. The Sig/Sauer Pistol is a 9x19mm semi-automatic pistol with a 15 round magazine. It fires double action from the first shot with subsequent shots being single action. The Sig/Sauer P226 pistol is being phased out as new members are trained on S&W and join the teams.
  4. Smith & Wesson, model 5946 semi-automatic pistol, 9mm x 19 calibre with three (3) 15-round magazines, double action only, and a safety. Operation – recoil operated, locked breech, delay blow back. Barrel Length – 101mm. Overall Length 197mm. Sights – three (3) dot, Novak-style flat black, green coloured, tritium night sights.