Leaked police report: Hamilton City Councillor Sam Merulla & former Police Board Chair linked with organized crime, ‘Ndrangheta mafia
Hamilton Councillor Sam Merulla and Musitano brothers in leaked police secret report. (montage – click for large.)
Whistleblower Derrick Snowdy reveals mob penetration of Hamilton Police Service.
A leaked 2006 Organized Crime Section report from ‘Project SCOPA’ shows City of Hamilton, Ontario, Ward 4 Councillor Sam MERULLA under police investigation and linked to ‘Ndrangheta mafia mob figures including Antonio ‘Tony’ AGRESTA and the recently-murdered Angelo MUSITANO of the Musitano Crime Family.
Two pages of the leaked report surfaced on the Twitter account of high-profile private investigator Derrick Snowdy (@jdsnowdy) on December 19, 2017 along with an allegation that in 2007 someone in the Golden Horseshoe RCMP detachment sabotaged an ongoing OPP Ontario Provincial Police investigation into Sam Merulla and members of the mob.
Snowdy states that at the time of the investigation in 2006 Sam Bernie Morelli was the Chair of the Hamilton Police Services Board and was also under police investigation.
Snowdy’s tweet and the attached unredacted documents have been seen (and perhaps copied) by thousands of people in the last four days before I even noticed them.
Here they are… (click to enlarge)
Although the unredacted documents are circulating on the Internet, I have redacted addresses and dates of birth in the above documents as I have a policy of not publishing Identity Information.
You will note that document #1 contains a bleed-through of a police intelligence report listing Sam MERULLA, Angelo MUSITANO and others as associates of mob member Antonio ‘Tony’ AGRESTA. Document #2 shows Merulla with the Musitano brothers.
About a month ago Derrick Snowdy also published on the internet several pages of a July 24, 2002 Halton Regional Police confidential intelligence report detailing how mobsters Domenic VIOLI and Paul GRAVELLE had a number of police officers on the payroll, including corrupt Hamilton cop Richard WILLS. (read Domenic Violi arrest a reminder that Organized Crime has penetrated Canadian police for decades)
Police to search home of Whistleblower Derrick Snowdy?
Snowdy has given no indication as to the source of these confidential police intelligence reports, but in November 2017 the Halton Regional Police stated that they were looking into the matter.
This latest release will no doubt cause further police scrutiny of Derrick Snowdy but if the involved police services are thinking of executing a search warrant at Snowdy’s home or business – I can tell them with certainty that they would find nothing.
I have never spoken with Derrick Snowdy, but knowing his history as an experienced investigator in major cases and that he was a central figure in the 2010 ‘Busty Hookers’ case that saw former Status of Women minister Helena Guergis turfed from the Harper Government and the Conservative party – I know that Snowdy is no neophyte.
Derrick Snowdy
Any leaked documents in Snowdy’s possession would at the very least not be at his home, business or the home of any relative or close friend. Most likely, the documents are scanned, encrypted and stored in multiple locations online that only he can access from memory. He would never access those locations from any computer or internet service registered to him or any friend or relative. There would be nothing at his home or business – not even an encrypted USB stick or drive – that would reveal any additional documents or their source.
Whistleblower Derrick Snowdy would conceal his movements and data with the concern and even the fear of someone championing freedom in any corrupt nation you can think of BECAUSE… he knows that in Canada various powerful cabals exist. Snowdy knows that some of these powerful cabals operate in Canada’s legal system, in policing, and in various levels of government. He also knows that these cabals will do anything to protect members from embarrassment or worse, and to retain power and status. The messenger of any wrongdoing by cabal members, in this case Snowdy, is aways the first target.
Snowdy also knows that organized crime always attempts to gain footholds and influence in legitimate organizations, including in government, police, the courts and the news media. He knows he is at risk and a target for revealing mob operations to the public.
Nope… there is nothing at Derrick Snowdy’s home or business that would reveal more leaked police documents or the source of the leak. Nothing.
Whistleblowing at this level takes a special kind of courage and integrity – and Derrick Snowdy has these qualities in good measure – along with ‘Police Officer X’ who must be the ultimate source of the documents.
‘Police Officer X’ probable source of the Snowdy leaked documents
It is apparent that the Snowdy documents (assuming they are genuine and I have no reason to believe they are not genuine) are likely originally sourced from a police officer who works or worked in an Organized Crime squad. As each of the documents was probably circulated through various municipal police agencies as well as the Ontario Provincial Police and RCMP, it will probably be impossible to trace the individual officer who originally leaked the documents.
I’ll call this source ‘Police Officer X’. Snowdy may have received these documents directly from Officer X, or through an intermediary. Or… Police Officer X might have anonymously sent them to Snowdy through a variety of methods.
I can only speculate as to the motivations of Police Officer X, but here is my guess…
Police Officer X is probably a long-serving officer working in organized crime who has seen over the years (as we all have) the efforts of organized crime to corrupt the police, courts and the government. He or she has seen good investigations thwarted and exposed. Officer X has seen criminals and mobsters go free as cabals stopped investigations to protect high-profile cabal members from being seen to be associated with known criminals.
So… I speculate Officer X did an end-run and leaked the documents because he or she believes that only the sunlight of exposure will undermine the corrupt. It takes courage and integrity to make such a choice. Officer X has these qualities.
Caution regarding Ward 4 Councillor Sam MERULLA
Hamilton Councillor Sam Merulla
As we examine the leaked documents, we must remember that we have only had a glimpse of a years-long project targeting organized crime. Is the man who changes the oil in a mobster’s car an associate… or just the guy who works at the local garage? As a police officer working organized crime you have to keep an open mind and rely upon building a wall of evidence that leaves no doubt as to the structure of criminal organizations, the members, associates, facilitators – and identifying those who aren’t really involved or associated. It is difficult. Sometimes you can’t be sure no matter how long you work at it.
As an experienced organized crime investigator, it is my opinion that for Sam Merulla’s photo and name to be so definitively featured in the organized crime intelligence reports, some supporting evidence must exist. That’s my opinion – but am I correct? Perhaps the missing pages of the Snowdy documents hold the answer. Or perhaps Sam Merulla can clarify things.
And yet… I was once investigated myself (and cleared) by the FBI, RCMP and Toronto Police for links to the Hell’s Angels Motorcycle Gang.
The year was 1977 and I was a motorcycle patrol officer working out of #2 District Traffic in Etobicoke. During that summer I was temporarily assigned to the CNE Canadian National Exhibition to direct traffic and patrol the grounds on my Harley Davidson. (As an aside, there is no better summer job for a 23 year old handsome rookie cop than to motor around the CNE, looking good and talking with tourists and the fine young ladies.)
One afternoon some American tourists asked to take photos with me beside my motorcycle. This was common and happened uncountable times a day. So, I held their four year old son and allowed him to wear my helmet as one of their friends took a series of photos. Smiling, we had our arms around each other and I also allowed everyone to sit on the Toronto Police Harley dresser. That was standard too – as people loved to have their and their children’s photos taken on a police bike. The kids go wild.
Flash forward about a year. I reported for duty and was immediately taken into a room with some very serious people – including Inspector Clay Crawford (my unit commander), a Staff Sergeant from the Intelligence Bureau, and officers from the FBI and RCMP. They wanted to know why US police raided a Hell’s Angels club house and discovered a large framed photo of yours truly, in uniform, smiling with my arms draped around a Hell’s Angels gang leader and his family.
As I looked at the photo I started to laugh and told my story. One of the serious people in the room said something like, “Yeah, that’s what we figured, but we had to be sure. Your name didn’t come up on the lines. (wiretaps)”
Another serious person interupted and stopped the conversation – chiding that the first had revealed a wiretap operation and that was not needed. Did the RCMP tap my home phone? I think they did, but in those days there was no law requiring police to notify wiretap subjects if no charges were laid.
So ended the investigation into my ‘association’ with the Hell’s Angels motorcycle gang.
No response from Sam Merulla
I’ve emailed Mr. Merulla and sent him a draft of this story, but so far have not had a response – but it’s Christmas so who knows if he viewed my email yet. I’ll send another.
Did Sam Merulla unknowingly have his photo taken with members of Hamilton’s mafia? Is that how his name and photo ended up in a police Organized Crime report? Or, is there another, deeper set of facts?
Let’s all keep open minds as we await a response from Hamilton Ward 4 Councillor Sam Merulla.
CORRECTION: The original version of this article reported that Hamiliton City Councillor Sam Merulla was Police Board Chair during the police investigation. Derrick Snowdy has clarified his original Tweet and indicates that Merulla was a Councillor during the investigation, while Bernie Morelli was the Chair of the Hamilton Police Services Board at the time. According to Snowdy, both Merulla and Morelli were under investigation.
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Donald Best
Barrie, Ontario, Canada
Cops are the worst ones out there why pick on poor Sam he is a hard working man making an honest living he may not always say the right thing it doesn’t mean he’s a crook he’s just making a living for his family the police are the real ones trying too fool u straight up bullshit so what he had a picture with a mob figure that don’t mean shit…
Not only do some Police Forces have members of their service on the payroll of some crime families; what is more alarming and disturbing is how some Police Officers operate the exact same way as the mafia. They just kill you slower!
Very sad day when Paul Manning drank the koolaid of covid. He believes in segregation of the unvaccinated. He doesn’t lose credibility on outing police corruption organized crime but he fails to realize this is who is behind all the covid manipulation. Crooked politicians crooked justice system crooked cops elites like Klaus Scwabbie.
Where a vaccine is causing massive harms but continues to be pushed even so far as firing people if they refuse the vaccine. So segregation of unvaccinated based on lies. Paul.Manning has lost his critical thinking skills to fear.
The evidence is right before your eyes. The harms of the vaccine that they push as safe. Where more are dying from the vaccine then covid in places. Where they trivialize myocarditis and heart attacks using climate change cold weather or bacon and eggs. This is absolutely alarming and when crooked cops are not held accountable like in Paul Manning’s case you get cops abusing people in the name of health. It’s about health but if you are caught with no mask they beat up on you.
Glad to see cops with integrity. Police on Guard for Thee Mounties4 freedom. I had tears listening to the former RCMP detail for Trudeau.
It’s for your health. It’s for your safety they say while experimenting with a vaccine. It’s for your safety when they lie and turn citizens against each other based on vaccine status. Your covid shot protects you from covid but not from the unvaccinated. Really. How’s that?
Covid gives out mild or no symptoms to majority so why do we need a vaccine for that. What is better then no symptoms? Or I have a virus in me that doesn’t make me sick but I can make someone else sick. The latest cruise ship with a number of covid positive all vaccinated and no unvaccinated on it all had no symptoms. So where is the problem then. Let’s sail on. You should celebrate no one got sick. You should celebrate that this virus is weak. Endemic.
Are insane people going to continue to run the show using lies and fear. It’s really looking that this pandemic is for the vaccine and not the other way around. These fear mongering doctors and media need to be held to account. So does the leaders. It cannot be about health if the cure is far worse then the virus.
This is an amazing revelation in Hamilton.
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I was reading Paul Mannings write up on Steemit regarding project Newton and one particular allegation that is very concerning is that of a Metro Toronto Police detective from the tactical unit who apparently uses parts of old guns and other equipment to make up new guns that he sells for $5000 to gang bangers in the Jane Finch corridor of Toronto. That is very alarming and instead of this police officer being fired and receiving criminal charges he is back to his old job in tactical as of 2015.
I call on all those who have suffered the loss of family members or were injured themselves by guns in the GTA to begin litigation against the Metro Toronto Police forcing this police officer to be held accountable for what he has done. You should make an inquiry with Paul Manning as to the identity of this piece of trash cop and embark on a civil action to expose the cover up of crooked cops that are nothing but a criminal. Never be afraid of the lawyers for these pieces of trash either. Join together as a group to out to give a swift kick in the butt against all crooked cops and a cop is crooked if they cover for a crooked cop. Kudos to Paul Manning for superb investigation and courage to tell his story.. We wish him all the best in his lawsuit against the Hamilton Police that has mysteriously disappeared from the Court file. We all know why it is not there. It exposes all the crooked people that are endangering each and every citizen of Ontario and Canada and across the world.
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Sam got the email. I sent him one too and he threatened to sue. Its disgusting that piece of work just got reelected. Theres more documents to come. Im just going to time the releasing. Peace!
Its a great thing he got reelected as now the fall will be even better with him still in politics and his link to the crime families is even more solidified in the minds of Canadians and you cant stop us Canadians from reading the Snowdy documents and seeing the cover up for ourselves. The various police involved cannot cover it up any longer and the more they tried to stop it the worse they look.
Nice to meet you officer X. Pretty much figured it was you. Love to meet you one day. A sad day when you are no longer a police officer because the confidence in our police forces is long gone.
We call on all police officers with integrity and courage to stand behind Officer X as he exposes the maffia into our law enforcement and that no doubt our reigning PM is the one behind stopping the inquiry in the casino money laundering drug problem in BC. We should be calling on investigators to find the link of organized crime to our current PM. My guess there is one. Remember too this casino at the centre of the money laundering is the one Kathleen Wynne gave the deals too. What honest premier would have any dealings with a casino under investigation. If we the little people can find the information our premiers office can too. So as citizens start demanding answers. The investigation has been going on since 2015 by the RCMP. When did Wynne give this casino chain the contracts. Do the date calculation and start demanding answers. Then follow the link to Bahamas and money laundering.
As a former police officer who worked on the Musitano/Merulla project, I have a pretty good idea who Officer X is. Kudos to him for providing the information. It frustrates me to know end that when I started on the job rumours back then circulated about city politicians and mob connections. And thirty years later, I saw it with my own eyes and nothing was ever done about it!!
Kudos to you Mirko Cop, You get our respect. Officer X is courageous. Hope more come online to back up the cover up of organized crime into law enforcement and link to politicians. This supports Donald Best and others. These criminals supported by a Justice system need to be eradicated. Labelled dangerous offenders and put away for a long time.
This leakage is important in light of the Ottawa Police Service allegation of senior members in bed with organized crime.
Maybe he didn’t get your email this Sam Meurela. It says it’s sent but it doesn’t reach its intended target.
This happens alot. I’m sure your email is targeted.
It never changed! Im starting to think it never will no matter what we risk? You worked with me on Scopa?
The Snowdy documents are creating a stir. The affidavit of William Majcher is creating a stir. Cover up of criminals has gone on for a very long time allowing them to get richer and richer. Thats the point. We allow them to get richer so they can pay more people off. We allow their legitimate businesses to get richer as they combine their dirty money with their legitimate businesses.
Dirty money that helps build a legitimate business makes the legitimate business dirty still. That is common sense. When they use legitimate businesses to money launder that makes the legitimate business dirty.
When is the FEDS going to freeze assets based on this common sense rule. Any arguments used in court by the lawyers is circumventing the rule of law. A criminal organization engaged in money laundering loan sharking drugs guns extortion and murder is a crime operation. Their legitimate businesses are dirtied by those criminal activities. The use of the client solicitor privilege to operate their criminal activities and its been admitted by the crooked lawyers themselves as easy to use then big changes need to come with respect to the client solicitor privilege. It wasnt just one lawyer that stated that. Its common sense to realize that it is used many times. A report state as Donald Best revealed that 25% of lawyers would money launder and the percentage is higher no doubt as some wouldnt admit it. That is a major problem. Major problems need fixing. The Courts have this information too. But the problem continues. So lets put the blame where it the blame should go.
The main source of money laundering is drugs monies. Drugs that kill every day. Drugs that ruin lives everyday. The drug dealers known as Hells Angels have used bombs themselves to blow stuff up. Any different from the terrorists????
I hear they are looking at freezing assets connected to the Bc casino money laundering scheme. Better happen soon.
Based on investigation the assets of former RCMP German needs freezing and so does a number of politician including the hedge fund conneted to the casino contract in Ontario.
Great reporting Donald Best regarding the Snowdy documents. That pretty much tells criminals no point to try to hack into his stuff. No doubt Snowdy will be followed. His every move watched. But thats ok because thats when the honest police can catch the crooked following him. There are so many amazing ways they can track. Ask the RCMP they know how its done. I know how its done.
Im not a cop. Im all for the police using these types of spying against the criminals protected by crooked lawyers and judges and government. Its necessary.
As always your posts are informative and hit the nail on the head. I enjoy reading them and I am sure the hundreds of thousands reading are too. You have a flair for writing. Your skills are impeccable.
Apparently when the government brought in their new anti terrorism and anti money laundering bill the lawyers sued the government to back down and remove lawyers from reporting stating that this put stress on the solicitor client privilege.
Well its time for the government to get back to the table and force the lawyers to report. The government should also sue the lawyers for suing them This lawsuit was nothing but a tactic to continue to allow lawyers to freely money launder. The citizens want a law suit pursued by the government against the law society as it is needed for our protection as much of this money laundering is drug proceeds.
Did you expect the Supreme Court of Canada to go against lawyers?????
If you need a smart lawyer to argue this point of the necessity to repeal the Supreme Court ruling you could use Slansky and you can use the evidence of the mocking lawyers in the Bermuda Short sting to prove that this client lawyer privilege is a loophole to money laundering and a lawyer reporting suspicious transactions is not a contravention of that lawyer privilege. If a client paid the lawyer with counterfeit money and the lawyer got caught at the bank with it hmmm lets see what argument he would use to get out of him possessing it. My bet is he would pin it on his client pretty quickly. The crooked lawyer Rosenfeld bragged that its 20 times easier to money launder in Canada and another crooked lawyer Martin Chambers stated its 100 easier to money launder in Canada. The Supreme Court allowed Martin Chambers to get out of a charge of importing Cocaine into Canada and then this guy once again got back into the drug trade as a money launderer and got caught. He apparently worked with the Russian mob Hells angels among others this Martin Chambers. It appears the Supreme Court is erring on many things as they protect lawyers and its lawyers every time that are at the centre of protection of criminals.
Would you call buying a house a confidential matter between you and the real estate agent. Of course it is. Real Estate agent apparently have to report any suspicious financial activities. The lawyer is the next stage in the house purchase are they not. So why are the lawyers exempt. Because the lawyer client privilege is the biggest loophole to protecting mobsters and organized crime allowing them to flourish in Canada and the law society sued the government to back down using their goons in court and using a Judge that would never rule against their own to protect that right so they can continue to money launder. What would be the estimate of how much a lawyer for the mob helps money launder for the rizzuttos?
Its very simple to figure this out that in order to crack down on money laundering drugs terrorism you put into place measures that are tough and help cut off access by crooked to money launder. Its not rocket science. The government got it right the first time but the courts failed the citizens and they allowed the bullies to put Canadian citizens at risk
Mr. Best you spent 63 days in jail. You werent released in 31 days. You know early release like Vito Rizzutto did. Interesting observation and perhaps we will continue to release stories and sentences handed out to mobsters and crooked lawyers to paint a pattern of how our justice system is there to protect criminals not to protect the public from criminals.
Actually Vito Rizzutto was let out in 5 years not 7 years as one article stated . He received a 10 year sentence and was let out early and there is no reason given for the early release.
David Simetic you received house arrest for how many years. Two and half years. They didnt let you have early release from house arrest. Yet Vito Rizzutto who had 3 people killed was let out early. The head of a organized crime family putting a hit on 3 people and having them killed doesnt serve the full sentence. Does that seem fair to all readers. Perhaps the judge in David Simetics case would like to answer the question for all of us. Were waiting for the answer!
MacLeans Magazine in November carried an interesting article by Antonio Nicaso regarding how Canada allowed Vito Rizzutto the head of the Montreal crime family to flourish and it really shows how the lawyers are at the centre of organized crime flourishing in Canada aided by crooked goverment that are pressured by thugs known as lobbyists to back down on laws that would stop organized crime from being successful.
Vito Rizzutto apparently wined and dined with politicians in the Caribbean all the time. The question to be ask is when Vito Rizzutto returned from serving 7 years in an American prison for conspiring to have 3 people murdered and he stepped off the plane in Toronto in 2012 why was he not put in handcuffs right there and then for being the head of a crime family engaged in racketeering, extortion, bribery, drugs, loansharking etc. That is a reasonable question to ask because after he was found guilty in the USA he couldnt cover up being associated with organized crime now could he therefore he could be subjected to the charge of being associated with an organized crime family. A charge that would stick. I guess those politicians he wined and dined and played golf with protected him wouldnt you say?
Then isnt it fair to say that those politicians that wined and dined with him put the lives of Canadians in danger. They breached the trust of the citizens of Canada and that those thugs known as lobbyists are doing the exact same thing. Putting our lives in danger and those who submit to the request of these thugs (lobbyists) are doing the same thing?
Has MacLean’s Magazine contacted you Don for an interview. They interviewed Antonio Nicaso about the Rizzutto crime family and your story is big too and Paul Mannings story is worth a front cover article in a Canadian magazine as its a story pertinent to all Canadians. Did Vito Rizzutto play golf with Al Paladin? I wonder based on the poster project xxx.
I coined a new phrase for another branch of terrorism — for which we need a new anti crime bill to encompass —its called government organized crime network. And we need a dedicated line with our national rcmp for TIPS .
AL paladini was supposedly a good fella. Perhaps we can have whistle blowers confirm if it’s true or not. He was in the Ontario cabinet. We have corruption and cover up in Ontario so yes it’s time for those frustrated at watching corruption start leaking names and stories. This type of courage will have a Streisand effect.
The Mike Duffy affair was just a smoke screen to take away from the real corruption and waste law enforcement time. Ever wonder why the revelation of Mike Duffy illegitimate child coincided with the charges being laid and who do you think leaked the story?,? Smart people are not fooled by their cover up of corruption. Can’t have bribery unless you have 2 people involved and Nigel Wright never received any charges did he? This cover up of a prime minister and his office is huge. A carefully orchestrated investigation to keep the drugs flowing into Canada no doubt.
Mr. Snowdey and the officer that leaked these documents deserve a medal of Honor. We the citizens applaud your courage and beseech thousands of officers to follow suit in exposing crooked cops and crooked government
Why are criminal organizations not treated like the terrorist organizations and anyone associated with them gets arrested. Then bring in a mandatory 10 year sentence for being associated with the crime family . Ask your federal government why this is not part of the criminal code and under our new terrorist act as criminal organizations are just a branch of terrorism…. when they don’t enact this type of law then you know our justice system is part and parcel of aiding and abetting criminal organizations.