A Montreal police officer who saw an illegal bookmaking case brought against him two years ago be tossed out this week says his career was destroyed by a bunch of lies.
“I am ashamed of the way (police) investigators worked on my case. Police investigators lied to justices of the peace (in order to obtain warrants),” André Thibodeau told the Montreal Gazette on Friday. “And all of this was done under the supervision of (Montreal police Chief Inspector) Costas Labos.”
“For me, all of the warrants are lies.”
“I am relieved but I am also mad. At least my nightmare is over.”
Thibodeau was suspended without pay after he was arrested in January 2015. At the time he was a sergeant and a supervising patrol officer based in Park Extension.
Labos, the former head of the Montreal police internal affairs division was in charge of the investigation which cost taxpayers more than $2 million in police work alone. Labos has made headlines in recent months. He was investigated on an accusation that he had lied to a justice of the peace, in a different case, in order to obtain a warrant. In September, the Directeur des poursuites criminelles et pénales announced no charges would be filed against Labos but soon after he was transferred to post where he supervises the centre that handles Montreal’s 911 calls.
In December, the Journal de Montréal reported that the Sûreté du Québec has begun another investigation into Labos, this time based on an allegation he obstructed justice. Also, on September 15, a Park Extension restaurant owned by Labos’s brother, Haralambos, was firebombed. Media reports on the arson fire alleged that the restaurant was frequented by several organized crime figures. A police source confirmed this week that Andrea (Andrew) Scoppa, 52, a leader within the Montreal Mafia who was charged in a cocaine trafficking case this week, was known to visit the restaurant.
On Thursday, the prosecution in Thibodeau’s case informed Superior Court Justice Marc David that it will no long proceed with the charges brought against Thibodeau, 51, and Natalino Paccione, 62, a man who had been previously linked to a multi-million bookmaking ring tied to the Montreal Mafia back in 2006.
The case was scheduled to have a hearing at the Montreal courthouse on Friday. But the prosecution instead requested a unscheduled hearing before Superior Court Justice Marc David, in Laval where the charges were actually filed, on Thursday.
Before Thursday, the case appeared to be headed to a trial in September. But during a court hearing in January, it was apparent the prosecution had a problem with disclosing some of its evidence to Thibodeau’s defence lawyer, Jeffrey Boro. During that same hearing, David grew impatient with what he was seeing and suggested to Thibodeau that he consider whether his constitutional right to have a speedy trial was being violated.
At issue was a black personal notebook Thibodeau had at his home that was seized when police with the Montreal internal affairs division executed a search warrant. The prosecution delayed returning the notebook, considered a standard part of the disclosure of evidence in any trial, so Thibodeau could prepare his defence.
“To me, I thought we had a good chance of winning,” Boro told the Montreal Gazette. The notebook would have provided several contradictions to what was alleged in affidavits used to obtain warrants, Boro said.
Six other men charged in the same case pleaded guilty to conspiracy and bookmaking charges last year. But Boro said he wants the public to know his client had nothing to do with running the bookmaking operation.
“It was a witch hunt against my client,” Boro said. “His life was ruined by an overzealous prosecution.”
