Sajjan military assistant had inappropriate relationship while with Vancouver police
An army reservist who was ordered suspended from the Vancouver Police Department for having an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate has been working as a military assistant to Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan.
Sajjan's office says the military was responsible for hiring Maj. Greg McCullough, and that neither the minister nor his staff knew about the complaint or disciplinary action taken against him while he was a sergeant in the Vancouver police.
"Neither the minister nor staff were aware of the complaints to the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner or the disciplinary actions taken by the Vancouver Police Department," spokesman Daniel Minden said in a statement.
"We expect all members of the Canadian Armed Forces to uphold the highest standards of professional conduct. The hiring process for military assistants is done by the Canadian Armed Forces. We are looking into this matter further."
Revelations about McCullough's hiring come as Sajjan faces calls from the opposition to resign over his handling of sexual misconduct allegations involving the top brass, and concerns about an "Old Boys network" that protects senior officers from repercussions.
McCullough is a senior member of the same army reserve unit that Sajjan commanded before entering politics, the British Columbia Regiment (Duke of Connaught's Own) and both served on the Vancouver Police Department.
Asked about the relationship between the two, Minden said: "The minister did not work together with Maj. McCullough at the Vancouver Police Department. They had met each other while serving as reservists in the British Columbia Regiment."
Minden referred questions about when McCullough was hired, why the position was created and the process followed to the Department of National Defence.
Sajjan currently has six military assistants, Defence Department spokesman Daniel Le Bouthillier said in an email.
All are employees of the military and not political staff, but work closely with the minister's office to provide a wide variety of support.
"This support includes, for instance, the facilitation of information flow between the CAF and the (defence minister), the provision of logistical support for travel and communications, the scheduling of military briefings and overall liaison services," he said.
McCullough was hired in March 2020 on a two-year contract "to support (Sajjan) while he is in his home riding," Le Bouthillier added. "The hiring was done as a Reserve Employment Opportunity, which is an advertised hiring process open to eligible members of the Reserve Force across Canada."
Le Bouthillier did not say who asked for the position to be created, the military or the minister's office.
Asked how often military assistants are hired outside Ottawa, Le Bouthillier said: "We have no formal record of such a situation."
Reached by telephone on Wednesday, McCullough told The Canadian Press that he works for the military in his current position and not for Sajjan. He also said the minister was not involved in hiring him.
"Minister Sajjan had nothing to do with my hiring process," he said.
"He required a military assistant on the West Coast because of the amount of time that he spends here, and that's it. I didn't speak with Minister Sajjan about this process, and I serve the Canadian Armed Forces."
McCullough repeated the same answer when asked about his relationship with Sajjan.
Media reports last year say McCullough was given a 15-day suspension in 2018 following an external investigation that found he failed to disclose a relationship with Const. Nicole Chan, and entered into the relationship despite knowing she was in a vulnerable state.
The 2018-19 OPCC annual report does not name McCullough, but did call for a five-day suspension for a police officer who "was in a personal, intimate relationship with a police officer who was under his direct supervision" and "failed to disclose this relationship with his supervisor."
The OPCC also called for 10-day suspension for the same officer for having "entered into the relationship with another police officer with the knowledge that the police officer was in a vulnerable state, mentally and emotionally."
The commission said the suspensions could be served concurrently.
It went on to note the first officer had since retired and "co-operated fully in the investigation and participated in all relevant processes. The police officer sought professional help in understanding his actions and wrote an apology to the other police officer."
McCullough retired from the Vancouver police in 2018, according to media reports.
Chan, who also had a relationship with another superior officer who was later fired from the Vancouver police, took her own life in January 2019.
The Vancouver Police Department did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication Wednesday.
McCullough said by text message that he disputed some of the previous media reporting surrounding what happened, though he did not provide specifics, and added: "I do not dispute the (OPCC's) finding, it is a matter of record."
"I was a proud member of the VPD and continue to serve this country in the military."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2021.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.
Local Spotlight
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
'I'm committed': Oilers fan won't cut hair until Stanley Cup comes to Edmonton
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
'It's not my father's body!' Wrong man sent home after death on family vacation in Cuba
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
'Once is too many times': Education assistants facing rising violence in classrooms
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
What is capital gains tax? How is it going to affect the economy and the younger generations?
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
UBC football star turning heads in lead up to NFL draft
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Cat found at Pearson airport 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly on a mission: N.S. student collecting books about women in sport for school library
Molly Knight, a Grade 4 student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.