Cameron Ortis pleads not guilty to charges of leaking secrets

globalnews.ca:

Cameron Jay Ortis,, a former RCMP intelligence director accused of disclosing classified information, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to all charges.

The ex-RCMP intelligence official accused of leaking secrets is expected to argue he had the authority to disclose the sensitive information. He was the former director-general of the RCMP’s National Intelligence Coordination Centre (NICC).

His trial began Tuesday and is set to run over the next two months.

Ortis’s arrest three years ago sent shockwaves through the Canadian intelligence community. As a senior official in the RCMP’s intelligence unit, Ortis had access to some of the country’s most sensitive criminal intelligence – from Canadian agencies and from close allies.

The 51-year old is facing four counts of violating the Security of Intelligence Act. In his capacity, he was known as a person “permanently bound to secrecy” at the time of the alleged offences in 2015. Ortis is also facing a charge of breach of trust and the unauthorized use of a computer.

The charges have not yet been proven in court, and few details about the allegations against Ortis can be publicly reported at this time.

The Crown says RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme and former Mountie boss Bob Paulson could be witnesses at the trial.

Jon Doody, a lawyer on Ortis’ defence team, said in an interview they intend to argue that the ex-RCMP analyst was authorized to share the information he’s alleged to have leaked.

“That’s really going to be the crux of the case, both for the Crown and the defence. The Crown is going to prove that he didn’t have authority (to release the information), and we’re going to demonstrate he did,” Doody told Global News.

If convicted by a jury, Ortis would face significant jail