New army leader faces sex claims
Cadieu under misconduct investigation
Lt.-gen. Trevor Cadieu, who was to take command of the Canadian Army, is now under police investigation after he was accused of sexual misconduct.
The Canadian Forces National Investigation Service has taken a statement from a woman who is a former member of the military, and is collecting other statements, the Ottawa Citizen has confirmed. It is unclear when the investigation will be finished.
Cadieu has denied any wrongdoing.
“The allegations are false, but they must be investigated thoroughly to expose the truth,” Cadieu said in an interview. “I believe that all complaints should be investigated professionally, regardless of the rank of the accused. I have already voluntarily provided information to the National Investigative Service, and I continue to await additional opportunities to cooperate fully with their investigation.”
Cadieu said he has provided detailed information and correspondence to investigators, and “I have taken other measures to prove my truthfulness and innocence.”
Cadieu, who has nearly 30 years with the Forces, was recently promoted to lieutenant-general and was slated to take over command of the army.
A change-of-command ceremony that was to have taken place in early September was cancelled at the last minute, shortly after acting Chief of the Defence Staff, Gen. Wayne Eyre, was informed about the CFNIS investigation.
“I know that these false claims will, as intended, create doubts about my ability to lead in this environment,” Cadieu said. “While I have devoted every day of my career to making fellow members feel respected and included, Canadian Army soldiers deserve a leader who is unencumbered by allegations and can lead at this important time when culture change, addressing systemic misconduct and preparing tactical teams for operations must remain the priority effort.” Cadieu said he has asked Eyre to consider selecting another leader for the position as soon as is practical.
National Defence noted in a statement to the Ottawa Citizen that Eyre was notified on Sept. 5 that the CFNIS had opened an investigation into Cadieu regarding “historical allegations.”
“The postponement of the (change of command) ceremony is not an indictment of Lgen Cadieu,” National Defence noted in its statement. “However, in light of the ongoing investigation, a decision was made to allow the justice system to pursue the matter in accordance with the rule of law.”
Over the past 10 months, the Canadian military has been rocked by allegations of sexual misconduct by senior leaders. Retired chief of the defence staff Gen. Jon Vance faced a number of sexual misconduct allegations and in July was charged with one count of obstruction of justice.
In August, Maj.-gen. Dany Fortin, who was heading up Canada's vaccine rollout strategy, was charged with sexual assault.
Military police are still investigating Vice-admiral Haydn Edmundson after a former member of the navy alleged she was sexually assaulted.
Maj.-gen. Peter Dawe had been on paid leave since early May after it was revealed that in 2017 he wrote a character reference for the sentencing hearing of an officer convicted of sexual assault.
The senior military leadership quietly brought Dawe back to Defence headquarters in September 2020, and put him in charge of crafting the military's response to external sexual misconduct reviews. But defence sources, who questioned the ethics of putting Dawe in such a role, tipped off the Citizen newspaper. The resulting anger from sexual assault victims forced the Canadian Forces to temporarily remove Dawe from his new job and raised new questions about whether the senior leadership was serious about dealing with sexual misconduct.
The Liberal government has not yet decided what to do with Adm. Art Mcdonald, who is still technically chief of the defence staff, although he only served in that job for a couple of weeks. Mcdonald temporarily stepped aside on Feb. 25, after military police launched an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct.
In August, police said an investigation did not find evidence to support charges. Shortly after, Mcdonald's lawyers released a statement saying the officer was returning to his job, even as the federal government pointed out it still hadn't decided his future.
The Liberal government responded by putting Mcdonald on leave and promoting Eyre to full general. Mcdonald has claimed that he has the “moral authority” to lead the military.
Eyre has been criticized as representing the status quo of an organization that has bucked change when it comes to dealing with sexual misconduct. Military personnel took to social media to challenge Eyre for refusing to punish Dawe, as well as for his decision to welcome back Vice-adm. Craig Baines as head of the navy. Baines came under fire after going golfing with Vance in a “public display of support” for the retired general.
Eyre has claimed there is no room for sexual misconduct in the military. But his critics say his reassurances are starting to ring hollow, particularly in the wake of the decision not to discipline any of the navy officers who joked about kinky sex and bondage during an official conference call. An investigation, released in September, confirmed that such comments were made and that they “demonstrated the sexualized culture that the (navy) must continue to confront.”
THE POSTPONEMENT OF THE CEREMONY IS NOT AN INDICTMENT OF (LT.-GEN.) CADIEU.