Mayor Rob Ford’s sister told police they were indeed doing crack cocaine in her basement back in April when they were surreptitiously filmed by a man who allegedly brought them the narcotics.

Police interviewed Kathy Ford twice in May as part of Project Brazen 2, a criminal investigation involving the mayor. The investigation was revived after the man who filmed the video sold images from the recording to a major daily newspaper.

A summary of Kathy Ford’s interviews with the Toronto Police Service was included in search warrant documents released by the courts Wednesday morning.

“She and the mayor were smoking crack cocaine, and she does say that as a clear statement,” said Peter Jacobsen, a media lawyer who fought for the public release of the documents. “These are all facts that I think won’t alarm people. I think people will have already known that this kind of activity was going on, but yet again it shows what the mayor was up to and the company he keeps.”

In the interviews which took place on May 15 and May 16, Kathy Ford told police she had not spoken to the mayor or his friend Sandro Lisi since April 26, the night of the recording. She identified the third person who was there as Michael Keith “Jugga” James and accused him of bringing the drugs she and the mayor smoked that night.

James was identified in the documents as the person who filmed the video.

Kathy Ford told police that the mayor was dropped off at her house by his driver Jerry who did not stay. She also said her brother arrived intoxicated but was not high on drugs, that he did not know it was James who allegedly supplied the drugs, and that Lisi did not do drugs.

According to the documents, Kathy Ford dismissed media reports of her brother pummeling Lisi saying they were only playing around.

She said none of them knew they were recorded until photos of the evening showed up in the Globe and Mail days later on April 30th.

Lisi, Ford’s former driver, is currently facing drug charges and also stands accused of extortion in connection with another video that surfaced in May 2013 showing the mayor once again with a pipe. His trial is scheduled to begin in 2015.

Police seek access to suspect’s phone

James was identified by confidential informants who police say were “well entrenched in the drug culture.” James was put under police surveillance and officers arrested him on May 12 for possession of a prohibited weapon and carrying a concealed weapon, identified in the document as brass knuckles.

Police seized three mobile devices – an iPhone, Samsung and LG phones – all believed to belong to James. Police said James did not wish to comment on the charges facing him, the evening in Kathy Ford’s basement or the sale of photos to the Globe and Mail.

But when police told him they would seek judicial authorization to analyze the phones, James indicated that he was in a lot of trouble, said police, and pointed to the iPhone as the one containing the video filmed in Kathy Ford’s basement.

Police said James believed himself to be in trouble for reasons that have “nothing to do with the video of the mayor.”

Police have not yet seen the video as the iPhone is password-protected. They are seeking help from Apple to unlock the phone. The audio on the phone was reportedly not working at the time the video was taken and only white noise can be heard on the video.

Lisi’s appearance on video could lead to additional charges

Lisi, Ford’s former driver, is currently facing drug charges and also stands accused of extortion in connection with another video that surfaced in May 2013 showing the mayor once again with a pipe. His trial is scheduled to begin in 2015.

James does not have a prior criminal record. Kathy Ford, however, has been convicted in the past for theft, fraud and possession of narcotics and property obtained by illegal means.

As a condition of bail, Lisi was prohibited from being in the company of people with a criminal record. It is not known what action police will take if they obtain video proof that they are seeking that might show Lisi and Kathy Ford in the same room together.

The court hearing to determine whether these police documents could be made public was supposed to be held last week, but was delayed so that Lisi’s lawyers could have a chance to view the Crown’s redactions in case his right to a fair trial would be affected.

Speaking to reporters outside a University Avenue courthouse, Jacobsen – whose clients include CP24 and CTV -- emphasized that the only reason the public initially found out about the existence of the ITOs is because there was a leak, and that leaks “shouldn’t have to occur.”

Justice Ian Nordheimer has “implored the police and the Crown,” said Jacobsen to advise about such documents as their investigation continues, or to explain to the judge why these documents must remain a secret.

“Even more fundamentally, there is the issue of oversight,” said Jacobsen. “Sealing orders and production orders and orders that grant access to people’s private communications are extremely intrusive and I think we want to have some oversight. We want to know once the police execute a warrant… The public should know what the police are up to and should know that there are applications being made and should know the grounds for these applications.”

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