Sources tell CTV News that it is unlikely Toronto Mayor Rob Ford will face criminal charges as a result of an ongoing police investigation into his activities, while provincial police say they turned the case back over to Toronto investigators after discovering there's nothing left to probe.
Toronto Police had asked the Ontario Provincial Police in early March to assume an oversight role in the investigation.
The OPP, however, confirmed Thursday that they’ve handed Project Brazen 2 back to Toronto Police because there is nothing for them to investigate.
OPP spokesperson Sgt. Pierre Chamberland said Thursday that no new information has come to light since then and that’s why the probe is back in the hands of Toronto Police.
Project Brazen 2, a spinoff from a separate investigation into drugs and guns, was launched last fall after police became aware of a video that shows Ford smoking what appears to be crack cocaine from a glass pipe.
The investigation led to the arrest of Ford’s friend and former driver, Alexander Lisi, who was charged with extortion for his alleged attempts to obtain the video.
Although Toronto Police say that Project Brazen 2 continues, Ford appeared relieved Thursday by the OPP’s decision to step away.
“I’d like to thank the OPP for doing a proper investigation,” he said at city hall. “I’ve said it from day one: I didn’t do anything wrong.”
Ford said he still supports Toronto Police “100 per cent.”
In the past, he has repeatedly criticized Police Chief Bill Blair, saying investigators were wasting taxpayers’ money to follow him and Lisi around. Ford has also publicly challenged Blair to arrest him.
Police documents unsealed Thursday show that members of the Dixon City Bloods Gang dreaded retribution if the Ford video was released. Ford's friend Elena Basso, who lives in the house where it’s believed the video was filmed, complained in a recorded conversation that police and "Rob's people" were "coming every day” after news of the video broke.
With a report from CTV Toronto’s Natalie Johnson
