‘Fraudulent non-disclosure’: Massive Toronto police drug case collapsed amid allegations officers misled court

Toronto Star

Project Brisa — billed Toronto police’s largest international drug takedown — fell apart as the defence alleged officers misled a judge to obtain a key wiretap warrant.

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Drugs and vehicles seized as part of Project Brisa were presented with fanfare at an outdoor news conference.

Toronto police’s largest international drug takedown collapsed amid allegations investigators misled a judge about a key player in an attempt to obtain a wiretap warrant, a “flagrant and unacceptable” move the lead defence lawyer alleged amounted to “fraudulent non-disclosure.”

Project Brisa — a vast, cross-border probe that netted $61 million in cocaine, methamphetamine and other contraband — fell apart suddenly in a downtown Toronto courtroom earlier this month after Crown prosecutors stayed scores of charges against all remaining accused. None of the 182 charges against 20 people that were announced at a major press conference in 2021 led to a conviction, the Star has confirmed.