Top Navy man faces charge he leaked secrets

OTTAWA (CP) — One of the Canadian Forces’ most senior officers has been charged with breach of trust following a two-year criminal investigation into the leaking of classified information.

The RCMP laid the charge on Friday against Vice-Admiral Mark Norman, who previously served as the military’s second-in-command and was widely considered a potential successor to Gen. Jonathan Vance as chief of the defence staff.

Norman’s lawyer, Marie Henein, released a strongly worded statement denouncing the RCMP’s decision to charge her client and promising to fight the allegation in court.

“Vice-Admiral Norman has devoted his entire career to serving Canada and our military,” she wrote. “This is a very sad day for an extraordinary Canadian who we should be celebrating rather than prosecuting. Our public resources should be put to better use.”

Norman is scheduled to appear in court April 10 and faces a maximum of five years in prison.

The case revolves around the newly elected Liberal government’s decision in November 2015 to reconsider a $700-million contract the Harper Conservatives had awarded to Quebec’s Davie Shipbuilding.

While the plan to revisit the contract was supposed to remain secret, court documents released last year show the RCMP suspected Norman of being upset with the decision and worried the government would cancel the project.