Reopened Investigation Concerning Allegations Against the Canadian Security Intelligence Service

Background 

NSIRA issued a supplemental final report resulting from a reopened investigation that was concluded by its predecessor, the Security Intelligence Review Committee (SIRC). 

The Complainant alleged that CSIS had violated his constitutional rights due to his race and religion as well as his refusal to work as a human source. He further alleged that CSIS agents were harassing him by stopping him in airports and following him. Lastly, the Complainant alleged that CSIS had disclosed false information to a foreign entity, which resulted in him being held for eight hours without food in a foreign country’s airport. 

In SIRC’s final report, SIRC concluded that the Complainant’s allegations of discrimination and harassment were unsupported. SIRC also concluded that the actions of CSIS officials had violated section 12 of the CSIS Act, ministerial directions, policies and operational procedures, and that these actions resulted in adverse consequences for the Complainant. 

NSIRA’s reopened investigation was strictly limited to two questions of law: (1) whether the reasonable grounds to suspect standard under section 12 of the CSIS Act must be met when CSIS makes initial inquiries of its operational holdings; and (2) whether CSIS was required to obtain an individual targeting authority against the Complainant. 

Investigation 

The investigation of the reopening was deemed to be continued before NSIRA pursuant to subsection 11(1) of the National Security Act. NSIRA considered the documentation submitted by the parties, including classified submissions and documents filed by CSIS. NSIRA also considered the submissions filed by the Complainant as well as any other relevant material made available during the course of the investigation of this reopening. 

With respect to whether the reasonable grounds to suspect standard under section 12 of the CSIS Act must be met when CSIS makes initial inquiries of its operational holdings, CSIS conceded during the investigation that it requires reasonable grounds to suspect that activities constitute a threat to the security of Canada, as described in section 2 of the CSIS Act, to conduct such initial inquiries of its operational holdings. 

On the facts of this case, NSIRA determined that SIRC had correctly found that CSIS did not possess objective facts about activities that met the requisite reasonable grounds to suspect standard. 

With regard to whether CSIS was required to obtain an individual targeting authority against the Complainant, NSIRA concluded that SIRC’s findings of fact regarding the extent and manner in which CSIS investigated the Complainant would not be revisited by NSIRA. NSIRA found that SIRC’s conclusion that there is a point in the CSIS investigation where CSIS agents were specifically investigating the activities of the Complainant was unequivocal, and, therefore, it was clear that CSIS should have obtained an individual targeting authority against him, yet failed to do so. 

Conclusion 

NSIRA determined that SIRC’s report and the findings were affirmed.