Rob Ford celebrates birthday as new allegations surface

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford attends an executive committee meeting at city hall in Toronto on Tuesday, May 28, 2013. (Chris Young / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford celebrated his 44th birthday Tuesday amid reports police questioned a staff member about an alleged drug video that the mayor says doesn’t exist.

A throng of reporters greeted Ford as he entered city hall Tuesday morning, many asking if the recent resignations of key senior staff members had anything to do with the video.

When asked by reporters why police reportedly questioned a staff member, Ford replied: “You have to ask my staff. I don’t know.”

The Toronto Star reported that after the video allegations first surfaced, David Price, a staffer with the mayor’s office, told then-chief of staff Mark Towhey he obtained a tip about where the video might be located.

The tip suggested the video was linked to the death of Anthony Smith -- a man seen posing with Ford in a photograph handed out by the seller of the alleged video.

Towhey reported the information to police, who then interviewed Price, the Star reported.

“Mark Towhey quite rightly said ‘We’re not going to do anything. We’re not going to try and go after this video,’” Star reporter Kevin Donovan told CP24 on Tuesday.

Journalists with the Star and U.S. website Gawker reported they have seen the alleged video, which they say shows Ford smoking what appears to be a crack pipe. The existence or content of the video has not been verified by CTV News.

Ford has said the video does not exist and he does not smoke crack cocaine.

Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday said he believes the reporters saw a video, but that it might be fake.

“I believe (Toronto Star reporter) Robyn Doolittle saw a video. I’m not sure exactly how authentic the video is,” Holyday said. “That’s why I say if we can get the video, we can have it analysed and, we can find out whether it’s accurate.”

The mayor’s brother, Coun. Doug Ford, said he hasn’t been approached about the alleged video.

“If anyone ever approached me with a video, I’d call police instantly,” Doug Ford said, adding that he has not spoken to police about the allegations.

The mayor has said little about what he called “personnel issues” that have plagued his office in recent days.

The mayor fired Towhey last Thursday, and on Monday his press secretary George Christopoulos and communications special assistant Isaac Ransom both resigned.

Asked about the upheaval at his office on Monday, Ford said, despite the loss of three senior staffers, it’s “business as usual.”

“I’m not going to get into personnel issues,” Ford told reporters adding that “we’re going to move on.”

On Tuesday morning the mayor attended an executive committee meeting -- the first such meeting since news of the alleged video emerged.

Ford broke his silence about the alleged video on Friday, eight days after reporters from U.S. gossip website Gawker and the Star each claimed to have seen it.

On Friday the mayor said he does not smoke crack cocaine and he could not comment on a video that does not exist.

Residents call on mayor to resign

On Tuesday a group of residents dropped off a specially made birthday cake for the mayor, which called on him to resign.

A group of women sang a special version of “Happy Birthday” for reporters as they dropped off the cake. They were not able to personally deliver it to the mayor.

A rally is being planned for Saturday at Nathan Phillips Square. The event – called “Stand Up for Toronto – Let’s Demand Rob Ford’s Resignation” -- is scheduled to take place at noon outside of city hall.

The event is described on Facebook as a “peaceful gathering to let (Ford) know, with no uncertainty, that we don’t think he’s fit to be mayor.”

As of Tuesday evening more than 1,700 people confirmed their attendance on the social networking site.

With a report by CTV’s Scott Laurie in Toronto