Jury in trial of ex-RCMP official charged with leaking secrets hears final arguments

The jury in the trial of a former RCMP intelligence official accused of leaking intelligence heard two wildly different explanations of Cameron Ortis's actions when Crown and defence presented their closing arguments Thursday.

Defence lawyer Jon Doody said his client was acting to protect Canadians from a "clear and grave threat." Crown prosecutor Judy Kliewer said Ortis's acts were "criminal and self-motivated."

The former civilian member of the RCMP has pleaded not guilty in Ontario Superior Court to six charges, including multiple counts of sharing special operational information without authority.

The Crown spent the first five weeks of the trial laying out how they believe Ortis used his position within the RCMP — leading an intelligence unit that had access to Canadian and allied intelligence — to attempt to sell secrets to individuals on the RCMP's radar.

During his four days of in-camera testimony, Ortis told the 12-member jury he never intended to sell information to anyone — and claimed he was actually working on a secret operation based on information from a foreign agency.

Ortis testified the alleged operation, which he said he called "OR Nudge," was intended to lure criminals to an encrypted email service to allow authorities to intercept their messages. The email service has called Ortis's claims "completely false."

Defence says lack of details not Ortis's fault

The defence presented its closing arguments first on Thursday morning in Ottawa.

"I suspect that after hearing Cam's testimony, you were still left with questions. And unfortunately, that's a reality of this case," said Doody.

"But Cam's inability to answer those questions should not be held against him in your deliberations."

Ortis, who is permanently bound to secrecy, told court he was acting to thwart a serious threat.

"Cam is not allowed to tell you the identity of the foreign agency that provided him with the information," said Doody.

"Nor is Cam [allowed to] tell you [about] the content of that threat."

Cameron Jay Ortis, left, arrives with his lawyes Jon Doody, centre, and Mark Ertel, right, to the Ottawa Courthouse in Ottawa on Friday, Nov. 3, 2023. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

The unprecedented trial has many restrictions in place for national security reasons. Multiple witnesses, including Ortis, have testified behind closed doors. Some exhibits shown to the jury have been redacted.

"Cameron Ortis is quite possibly the first Canadian required to testify in their own defence without the ability to tell the jury ... the full story," said Doody.

"Yet Cam did not cower away from testifying, in light of those restrictions."

Defence claims Ortis was trying to protect Canada

Ortis was motivated "to protect Canada and its citizens like you and me," the lawyer argued.

Ortis is accused of leaking special operational information to Phantom Secure CEO Vincent Ramos — who sold encrypted cellphones to organized crime members — and Salim Henareh and Muhammad Ashraf, two men police suspected of being agents of an international money-laundering network with ties to terrorists.

He's also accused of trying to leak information to Farzam Mehdizadeh. One RCMP witness told Ortis's trial he believes Mehdizadeh worked with "the most important money launderers in the world."

Screen grab from body cam video of Vincent Ramos's arrest by Bellingham Police on March 7, 2018. (Bellingham Police Department)

Ortis maintained that he didn't share information the men wouldn't already have been aware of and was doing so to prove his "bona fides" as part of the mission.

Doody reminded the jury the emails to Ramos they've seen stopped soon after he switched to using the encrypted email service.

That shows Ortis was only interested in his mission, said Doody.

"No other explanation can logically explain why Cameron Ortis would simply stop communicating with the only target of the 'nudge' who continue to engaged with him, even after hearing there'd be money involved," said the lead counsel.

"Apply your common sense. What other reason could there be? If trying to answer that question leaves you unsure, then that's reasonable doubt. That would require you to acquit."

During Doody's closing arguments, Ortis, wearing a navy suit, sat back with his elbow on the desk.

Crown says Ortis's 'evidence can't be believed'

Minutes into her closing arguments, Kliewer bashed that defence.

"Ortis had no authority to communicate this special information. And the story that he told you about why he did what he did doesn't have the slightest ring of truth," she said.

"My submission to you is that his evidence can't be believed."

Crown prosecutor Judy Kliewer makes her opening statement in the trial of Cameron Ortis on Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2023. (Sketch by Lauren Foster-MacLeod)

Kliewer spent hours methodically going through the case, pointing out what she called "fatal flaws" and inconsistencies in Ortis's testimony.

Kliewer said the information Ortis shared was not the kind to simply "nudge" individuals to use an e-mail platform, as Ortis has suggested.

She also took issue with Ortis's claim about insider threats in in the RCMP. She said he would have a duty to report moles to his superiors.

She argued the information Ortis amassed and sent out was designed to enable the recipients to stay ahead of the law.

"No one authorized it, no one knew about it. This was not RCMP activity. This was not on behalf of the RCMP," Kliewer told the jury.

"This was a betrayal of the RCMP."

Kliewer's closing summation is expected to run into Friday.

Web searches read into the record

The jury has heard from about a dozen current and former RCMP witnesses. The agreed statement of facts runs to more than 500 pages and includes emails and documents Ortis sent to his targets.

In one of those e-mails, Ortis asks for $20,000 in exchange for full copies of classified documents. The jury has heard there is no evidence to suggest he ever received a payout.

During cross-examination earlier this month, Crown prosecutor John MacFarlane also read Ortis's web searches into the record. They include a search for "top 10 tips for counter-surveillance while walking" and "how to avoid video surveillance cameras and avoid facial [recognition]."

Ortis said those searches were for a training program he was putting together for his team members.

Former British diplomat and Soviet spy Kim Philby in a file photo dated Nov. 8, 1955. The Crown asked Cameron Ortis why he looked up information about the infamous double agent. Ortis said it was for a risk assessment he was conducting for the RCMP. (The Associated Press/File)

MacFarlane also asked Ortis why he looked up information online about Kim Philby, a British intelligence officer who was a double agent. Philby was part of the Cambridge Five, a spy ring which provided intelligence to the Russians during the Second World War and the early part of the Cold War.

"All these web searches are in the exact time when you're communicating special operational information to alleged criminals?" MacFarlane asked.

Ortis said he was doing a "risk assessment" for the RCMP on Edward Snowden, who leaked highly classified information from the National Security Agency in 2013.

Redacted transcripts of Ortis's testimony have been provided to the media. His final hours of cross examination have not yet been made public.

The unprecedented trial has taken close to seven weeks to get to this point. It's the first time Security of Information Act charges have been tried out in court.