Police Union Calls on Minister to Hold Inquiry Into CBC Prank Interviews Targeting Retired Mounties

‘Sick to my stomach’: RCMP veteran who says he was targeted in incident speaks out

RCMP officers march towards the B.C. Law Enforcement Memorial ceremony at the legislature in Victoria, B.C., on Sept. 24, 2023. The Canadian Press/Chad Hipolito

Canada’s largest police union is demanding the minister of culture launch an inquiry into a CBC Entertainment program that allegedly tricked retired RCMP officers into participating in interviews only to be “publicly shamed” on stage with accusations tied to residential schools and systemic racism.

The National Police Federation (NPF), which represents roughly 20,000 RCMP members, says it also wants to express “outrage and shock” that retired Mounties were “ambushed on camera” by the taxpayer-funded program.

Participants say they were led to believe they were taking part in a documentary honouring RCMP veterans but were instead brought before a live audience and pressured to respond to speeches criticizing the RCMP and Canada’s treatment of indigenous peoples.

“They were drawn into a production built on fabricated identities and a hoax that condemned the RCMP and, by extension, its Members, while disparaging their service to Canadians,” the union wrote in a May 21 news release. “In short, participants were deceived, insulted, and publicly shamed at the expense of Canadian taxpayers.”

In addition to stopping broadcast of the footage and investigating how it was planned, approved, and funded, the union is asking Culture Minister Marc Miller to force the CBC and co-producer Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN), which also receives federal funding, to name decision-makers and staff responsible.

A request for comment from Miller’s office was not answered by the time of publication.

The controversy has also expanded beyond former Mounties, with several public figures alleging they were similarly misled by the program into participating in politically charged “social experiments” tied to indigenous reconciliation and Canadian history.

Some participants say they believed they were being set up to appear racist or morally culpable on camera. Critics of the production say the tactics went beyond satire and instead sought to publicly humiliate participants under false pretences.

‘Subjected to a Prank’

For its part, the RCMP said they are aware of an incident in which a retired RCMP officer was “subjected to a prank during filming in Vancouver in March 2026.”

“We have expressed concern for the mental health and well-being of the veterans affected by this experience and will continue working closely with the RCMPVA [RCMP Veteran’s Association] and its membership to ensure that those impacted have access to appropriate resources,” the RCMP wrote in a May 20 statement to The Epoch Times.

Glen Siegersma, chief administrative officer of the RCMP Veterans Association, said the series targeting retired RCMP officers has significantly distressed some of the officers.

“The people who are doing this are not thinking about the potential impact,” Siegersma wrote in a statement to The Epoch Times.

A retired RCMP officer who uses the name “Clinton Jaws” on his YouTube channel said he was one of six retired RCMP officers who went to the event believing they were taking part in a legitimate CBC and British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) documentary entitled “After the Call.”

Jaws said the former officers were instead seated onstage before an audience and pressured to listen to speeches criticizing the RCMP in relation to Canada’s residential schools and alleged systemic racism while being asked to shake hands with indigenous participants in support of dissolving the police force.

Although he ultimately did not shake hands and agree to the disbanding of the RCMP, Jaws said he felt manipulated and emotionally shaken by the incident.

“I’m sick to my stomach,” Jaws recalled of how he felt after leaving the event. “I guess they got me, but there was no funny part. It wasn’t a prank. And I still don’t understand it—I don’t get it.”

Jaws added that the event was “dangerous” and disturbed many who took part, including officers suffering from trauma as a result of experiences they had while serving.

“They messed with minds that you shouldn’t be messing with,” he said.

‘Northland Tales’

CBC confirmed May 19 that it has decided to pause production on the program, whose working title is “Northland Tales.”

“It is important for us in the execution that this entertainment series does not negatively impact our news brand. With that context, we are currently pausing on production while we assess the existing footage,” CBC Head of Public Affairs Chuck Thompson told The Epoch Times.

In a previous May 13 statement, Thompson said the program was meant to engage in satirical surprise tactics in “social experiments” with the aim of addressing historical wrongs against indigenous peoples.

“Social experiments and satirical prank shows are a long-established television format used by broadcasters and streamers around the world, including many public broadcasters,” he said. “A form of comedy is being deployed to increase better understanding of historical injustices against Indigenous peoples and support truth and reconciliation in Canada.”

Thompson said the series was first pitched at the Indigenous Screen Summit at the Banff World Media film festival in 2024, and clarified that APTN News and CBC News are not involved in the CBC Entertainment venture. He did not say how much funding the CBC has committed to the project thus far.

Others Targeted

Several other people have also alleged they were targeted by the program, including academic Frances Widdowson, Conservative MP Aaron Gunn, OneBC MLA Dallas Brodie, and author Lindsay Shepherd. They said the targeting seemed to involve reconciliation, residential schools, or Canadian history.

Shepherd said she was duped into making media appearances in an “elaborate scheme” she was led to believe was about discussing and honouring the legacy of Macdonald. Shepherd has written a children’s book about the contributions of Canada’s first Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald.

Statues of Macdonald have been taken down in recent years by activists and elected officials who blame him for Canada’s residential school system.

Gunn has said Canada’s historical treatment of indigenous people does not constitute a “genocide” and has spoken supportively about Macdonald, while Widdowson and Brodie have questioned claims of unmarked graves at the site of the Kamloops Indian Residential School.

In 2021, the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation reported that ground-penetrating radar had found what were believed to be 215 potential unmarked graves at the site of the former residential school. There has been no exhumation at the site to confirm the claim.

Gunn said he didn’t agree to an interview and has accused those behind the program of trying to “further attack Canada’s history and smear the reputation of Canada’s first Prime Minister.”

Brodie said her team declined an interview after questions to the crew inviting her to appear led her to believe the show was not legitimate.

In Widdowson’s case, the former professor says she was given a round trip from Calgary to Vancouver at the program’s expense, where she was paid an honorarium and had her hotel paid for. During the interview she had been told was about free speech and indigenous relations, she said children’s shoes were dumped out on a table in front of her in what she said seemed to be an attempt to characterize her as racist.

In addition to the National Police Federation’s calls for an inquiry, Conservative MP Rachel Thomas sent a May 13 letter to CBC CEO Marie-Philippe Bouchard asking for a formal investigation to be carried out and for more details on the scope of the CBC’s involvement in the project, calling it “incredibly offensive and unethical.”