by P.J. Harston
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 08/97) - Canada's solicitor general has been drawn into the Wing Lee case -- an RCMP investigation that has resulted in dozens of sex, pornography, gambling and wrestling charges.

MP Andy Scott, who was appointed solicitor general in June, has forwarded a letter of complaint he received to the Western Arctic RCMP's district officer in command.

The letter was sent to Scott by Yellowknife Women's Centre executive director Arlene Hache. In her letter, she asked Scott to order a public inquiry into how Yellowknife RCMP handled the Lee investigation.

However, the head of Western Arctic's RCMP detachments said Wednesday morning that an inquiry won't be conducted, at least not yet.

"At this point, we're treating it as a public complaint, but we're between a rock and a hard place on this one," said RCMP Supt. Terry Elliott.

Elliott was appointed commanding officer of the Western Arctic RCMP district -- he oversees all 22 detachments in the district -- two weeks ago.

He and his staff will look into how Yellowknife Mounties conducted their investigation, but he won't be able to release detailed findings, if any, for sometime.

"We've got (Lee's) trial still coming up and we don't want to release any details that might impinge on the rights of the accused," he said.

In a news release issued Wednesday afternoon, Elliott said the RCMP are confident that allegations made against police in relation to the Lee investigation are unfounded.

Those allegations include:

• lack of action by police to past complaints of prostituting
• persons in high-profile positions appearing in videos seized from Lee's residence
• concerns that missing girls may have been subjected to prostitution prior to their disappearances and may appear in the pornographic videos seized.

Elliott pointed out during the interview Wednesday morning that Hache does have another option.

If she's dissatisfied with his investigation, Hache can then ask the RCMP Public Complaints Commission to look into the affair.

The commission is a quasi-judicial panel that can hold hearings and make recommendations to the RCMP commissioner.

Hache not satisfied

Hache said she has not been contacted by the RCMP or the solicitor general's office about her letter.

However, she said an internal investigation is nowhere near enough to satisfy her that police have done their job properly.

"It's ludicrous to assume that anyone would be satisfied with an internal investigation," said Hache. "The trust has been broken here and an inquiry must be held before that trust (between the community and police) can be re-established."

Hache said that because police allowed Lee's poker games to continue for a number of years -- games frequented by a number of high-profile Northern citizens -- and because her organization has complained to police in the past about allegations of pornography and prostitution at the Gold Range, the RCMP has lost the community's trust.

"There's a perception out there that RCMP did favors ... by turning a blind eye," said Hache, adding that if an independent inquiry found no fault with the RCMP, she would be satisfied.

If she isn't notified by Monday by the solicitor general's office or the RCMP, Hache said she will take further action, possibly through the RCMP Public Complaints Commission.

Lee, 61, who ran a poker club in his Gold Range residence until his arrest in late May, is being held in custody awaiting preliminary hearings into 26 charges ranging from paying a minor for sex to operating a gaming house. His next court appearance is set for Aug. 21.