Paul Manning (police Officer, Born 1973)
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Paul Manning (born September 21, 1973), also known by the pseudonyms Paul Wright and the Englishman, is a disgraced former Hamilton Police Service officer (Ontario, Canada), Metropolitan Police Service officer (London, UK) and Royal Military Police officer (UK) who worked
undercover A cover in foreign, military or police human intelligence or counterintelligence is the ostensible identity and role or position in an infiltrated organization assumed by a covert agent during a covert operation. Official cover In espionage, a ...
in an
Ontario Provincial Police The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is the State police, provincial police service of Ontario, Canada. The OPP patrols Provincial highways in Ontario, provincial highways and waterways; protects Government of Ontario, provincial government buil ...
and Hamilton Police Service joint task force for 18 months, successfully infiltrating the Musitano crime family, Papalia crime family and the Hamilton chapter of
Hells Angels The Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (HAMC) is an international outlaw motorcycle club founded in California whose members typically ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles. In the United States and Canada, the Hells Angels are incorporated as the Hells ...
. Manning alleges he was sold out by other serving officers affiliated with organized criminals while working undercover and that an attempt was made on his life by members of the Front Lines
Bloods The Bloods are a primarily African Americans, African American street gang which was founded in Los Angeles, California. The gang is widely known for Crips–Bloods gang war, its rivalry with the Crips. It is identified by the red color worn ...
. He further alleges years of
police corruption Police corruption is a form of police misconduct in which a law enforcement officer breaks their political contract and abuses their power for personal gain. A corrupt officer may act alone or as part of a group. Corrupt acts include taking ...
and cover-ups, most of which remain unproven or uninvestigated.


Biography

Manning was born in
Accrington Accrington is a town in the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England. It lies about east of Blackburn, west of Burnley, east of Preston, north of Manchester and is situated on the culverted River Hyndburn. Commonly abbreviated by locals to ...
,
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
, UK, on September 21, 1973, attending Rhyddings High School. In 1993 he joined the Royal Military Police and the Metropolitan Police Service around 1998, immigrating to Canada in 2005, joining Hamilton Police Service sometime in summer 2005.


Project Scopa

Manning was recruited to work undercover because of his previous, extensive undercover experience and he was a recent immigrant to
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, therefore an unknown. Manning's assignment was to infiltrate the James St North area of Hamilton, a tight-knit community of both residential properties and small businesses with strong Italian and Portuguese influences. Traditional
organized crime Organized crime is a category of transnational organized crime, transnational, national, or local group of centralized enterprises run to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally thought of as a f ...
has, and still continues to maintain a grip over the small community. Manning was to penetrate through deception, this historically difficult and extremely dangerous crime group. He was to gather evidence on offences for future prosecution, in an attempt to disrupt and dissuade further criminal activity. Manning spent over a year living in the community, engaging in criminal acts. His cover was consistently tested; he was the victim of an attempted murder and would be subjected to mock executions in an attempt to ascertain if he was an undercover police officer. In late 2006 the operation was compromised due to an intelligence breach suffered by the
Ontario Provincial Police The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is the State police, provincial police service of Ontario, Canada. The OPP patrols Provincial highways in Ontario, provincial highways and waterways; protects Government of Ontario, provincial government buil ...
. In a $6.75 million lawsuit filed by Manning and his wife, Sabina Manning, Manning alleges he was sold out by other Hamilton Police Service officers, and that the operation was intentionally compromised to disguise that fact. He describes the uncovering and reporting of years of criminality on the part of serving and retired officers.


Aftermath

In the lawsuit, Manning details his years of battling mental illness because of the assault and not only the lack of assistance from his senior management team, but their continued bullying of an officer turned
whistleblower Whistleblowing (also whistle-blowing or whistle blowing) is the activity of a person, often an employee, revealing information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe, unethical or ...
. Manning was subsequently diagnosed with
post-traumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental disorder that develops from experiencing a Psychological trauma, traumatic event, such as sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse, warfare and its associated traumas, natural disaster ...
related to the attempted murder. On May 28, 2016, a story, which mentions Manning's lawsuit, was published by ''The Hamilton Spectator'' indicating criminality on the part of a senior investigator at Hamilton Police Service, who subsequently killed himself. This investigator is not only mentioned in Manning's lawsuit, but the story somewhat corroborates what Manning alleges and directly accuses senior management at Hamilton Police Service of covering up wrongdoing. On February 14, 2019 the City of Hamilton were ordered to pay Manning $20,000 because of unnecessary delays in a
lawsuit A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties (the plaintiff or claimant) against one or more parties (the defendant) in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today ...
the officer brought against the Hamilton Police Services Board and former Chief Glenn De Caire. The amount awarded Manning and his wife, Sabina, was to cover court costs and as a deterrent to the city against any further delays. On September 17, 2019 the City of Hamilton were order to pay Manning a further $40,000 because of additional delays in the same lawsuit. Ontario Superior Court Master P. Tamara Sugunasiri took the unusual step of striking the defendants defence, meaning the Hamilton Police Service Board and Glenn DeCaire lost their right to keep defending this action. In her ruling Sugunasiri added: "The continued failure to respect the process, the rules and opposing counsel's time and efforts is unacceptable and rises to the level of bringing the administration of justice into disrepute." The lawsuit was filed September 2015 and is still pending.


Ottawa Recordings

Sometime during the week of July 23, 2018 Manning began uploading partial audio recordings to
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
that claimed to be of Ottawa Police Association president Matthew Skof. In multiple calls, Skof reveals information on an active undercover operation targeting El-Chantiry and makes allegations that Eli El-Chantiry, the Ottawa Police Service Board chair is involved in organized crime. In response to the release of the partial recordings, on July 23, 2018 Chief Charles Bordeleau initiated a Chief's complaint asking the Ontario Provincial Police to launch an investigation "focused directly on the origins of the recordings and the individuals involved". The Ottawa Police Service has repeatedly refused to investigate allegations of criminal conduct by El-Chantiry, in the form of land development dealings, bribes and election campaign fraud. At first Skof vehemently denied it was him talking in the recordings and stood by El-Chantiry in a media conference. After the source provided evidence to the Ottawa Citizen and agreed to an anonymous interview, on July 30, 2018 retracted his denial and admitted it was his voice on the recordings. Manning then uploaded a further partial recording in which Skof alleged members of the Ottawa Police Service senior management team had tried to obstruct justice in a prior Ontario Provincial Police investigation. On September 27, 2018 Bordeleau instructed law firm Caza Saikaley LLP to request a mandatory injunction ordering Manning to "cease the dissemination and broadcast of any video and audio recordings which implicate the privacy interests of, and negatively impact the OPS and its members." Manning claimed to the ''
Ottawa Citizen The ''Ottawa Citizen'' is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. History Established as the Bytown ''Packet'' in 1845 by William Harris (journalist), William Harris, it was renamed the ''Ci ...
'' that it "is a badly veiled attempt to hide tapes from the public of one of their own members alleging criminal wrongdoing against senior management and others." The recordings were removed from social media, and on November 7, 2018 a ‘Notice of Discontinuance’ was filed with the courts. On January 22, 2019 Matthew Skof was arrested by the Ontario Provincial Police and charged with multiple counts of Criminal Breach of Trust and Obstruction of Justice.


Halton Regional Police

On January 8, 2021, through Twitter Manning made the allegation that the Halton Regional Police Chief, Stephen Tanner was vacationing in Florida during a
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
Provincial lockdown. Tanner admitted he was out of country and apologized to his officers and the community, stating he had permission from the Police Services Board Chair, Oakville Mayor, Rob Burton. Mayor Burton was subsequently forced to resign from the board. The Halton Police Services Board met several times to decide Tanner's future with Halton Regional Police releasing a statement on January 21, 2021 stating the board expressed its “full and unequivocal confidence” in Tanner and confirmed that they will not be taking “any further action.”


Theories

In an April 30, 2019 interview with ''The Buffalo News'', Manning claimed the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
assertion that the
Mafia "Mafia", as an informal or general term, is often used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the Sicilian Mafia, original Mafia in Sicily, to the Italian-American Mafia, or to other Organized crime in Italy, organiz ...
no longer had an active presence in
Buffalo, NY Buffalo is a city in the U.S. state of New York and county seat of Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River on the Canadian border. With a population of 278,349 according to ...
was wrong. After a spate of
Mafia "Mafia", as an informal or general term, is often used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the Sicilian Mafia, original Mafia in Sicily, to the Italian-American Mafia, or to other Organized crime in Italy, organiz ...
murders in Canada, Manning asserted "There's a massive power play underway and it's tied to Buffalo." Adding he believed Dominic Violi, son of the late Mafia Boss Paulo Violi, was an "underboss" in the Buffalo Crime Family. In a December 17, 2019 interview with ABC's 7 Eyewitness News, Manning claimed recent
Homeland Security Homeland security is an American national security term for "the national effort to ensure a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards where American interests, aspirations, and ways of life can thrive" to ...
and FBI raids were tied directly into Italian Organized Crime and
Transnational Organized Crime Transnational organized crime (TOC) is organized crime coordinated transnational crime, across national borders, involving groups or markets of individuals working in more than one country to plan and execute illegal business ventures. To ach ...
.


Book

In 2024, Manning released Ten Seventy Eight: An Undercover Officer’s Battle Against Organized Crime and Police Corruption, a gripping account of his covert operations and the corruption he uncovered within law enforcement. The book, which details his infiltration of a powerful criminal organization while exposing systemic failures from within, quickly became an Amazon Bestseller.


References


Sources

*Taekema, Dan (2 Feb 2022)
Hamilton police officer guilty of discreditable conduct has 7 days to resign or be fired
"CBC News" * Rankin, Jim; Edwards, Peter; Buist, Steve (21 April 2016

''The Toronto Star'' * Buist, Steve; Rankin, Jim; Edwards, Peter (21 April 2016
Ex-Undercover hamilton Cop Alleges Betrayal By His Own Force
''The Hamilton Spectator'' * (21 April 2016
Undercover Lawsuit
''CHCH News'' * Bennett, Kelly (10 May 2016
Once Undercover, hamilton Cop alleges Police didn't have his back
''CBC News'' * (21 April 2016
Former Cop Suing Hamilton Police and OPP
''900 CHML'' * (21 April 2016
Former Cop Suing Hamilton Police and OPP
''AM 730'' * Edwards, Peter (21 April 2016
Undercover Cop Alleges Betrayal; worked Hells Angels, Mafia
''Peter Edwards Blog'' * (21 April 2016
Former Cop Suing Hamilton Police and OPP
'i880am' * Buist, Steve; Hayes, Molly; Dunphy, Bill (28 May 2016
Spectator Investigation: Sex, Drugs and Police Misconduct
''The Hamilton Spectator'' * Dreschel, Andrew (1 June 2016
Police Board Asking Tough Questions on Officer Misconduct
''The Hamilton Spectator'' * Edwards, Peter (30 July 2017

''The Toronto Star'' * Browne, Rachel (31 August 2017
Ontario May Be In The Midst Of A Mob War
''Vice News'' * Metelsky, Stephen G (11 February 2018
Illegal Gambling
''Underworld Stories'' * Hepfner, Lisa (26 April 2018
Ruthowsky Challenges Sentence
''CHCH News'' *Helmer, Aedan (24 July 2018
Leaked Ottawa Police Service Audio Recordings
''Ottawa Citizen'' *Helmer, Aedan; Fenton, Drake (30 July 2018
Police Union Boss Admits To Being Voice On Parts Of Leaked Audio Tapes
''Ottawa Citizen'' *Manning, Paul; (14 September 2018
Coroner's Office Directs Police Reopen Investigation
''Exaro News'' *Edwards, Peter; O'Reilly, Nicole (14 September 2018

''The Toronto Star'' *Edwards, Peter; (17 September 2018

''The Toronto Star'' *Manning, Paul; (17 December 2018
Did Premier Ford oversee the Obstruction of Justice
''Exaro News'' *Edwards, Peter; (1 February 2019

''The Toronto Star'' *Taekema, Dan; (1 March 2019
City Ordered to Pay Former Undercover Cop $20K
''CBC News'' *Fairbanks, Phil; (30 April 2019
A Canadian Murder. 'Buffalo's Crime Family.' Is the Mafia Still Around?
''The Buffalo News'' *Humphreys, Adrian (19 September 2019
Hamilton Police Ignored Court Orders, Brought Justice into Disrepute
''National Post'' *Taekema, Dan; (19 September 2019
City Loses right to Defend Itself in Lawsuit Brought by Former Undercover Cop
''CBC News'' *Specht, Charlie; (17 December 2019
Is Strip Club raid a sign of Buffalo Mafia resurgence
''7 Eyewtiness News'' *Pazzano, Sam; (4 March 2020
Trademark Killing Sends Message
''Toronto Sun'' *Edwards, Peter; (8 April 2020

''Toronto Star'' *Collman, Ashley; (25 June 2020
3 Cops watched a fellow officer slowly kill George Floyd
''Business Insider'' *Edwards, Peter; (10 July 2020

''The Toronto Star'' *Humphreys, Adrian; (12 July 2020
Murdered Mob Boss Pat Musitano Symbolized Ontarios Mafia With His Gangster Chic
''The National Post'' *Yuen, Jenny; (9 January 2021
Whistle Blower Claims Haltons Top Cop in Florida Helping Girlfriend Sell Home
''The Toronto Sun'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Manning, Paul 1973 births Living people People from Accrington Canadian police officers Undercover police agents Metropolitan Police officers Royal Military Police soldiers English emigrants to Canada Military personnel from Lancashire 20th-century British Army personnel