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HAY RIVER
The resignation of a Hay River town councillor in July was not for the reason given at the time, according to Mayor Kelly Schofield.

It turns out that Reiss Kruger was asked to resign after files of an undisclosed "questionable nature" were allegedly discovered on his town laptop computer.

Kruger submitted his resignation letter on July 11.

Schofield addressed Kruger's departure in a two-paragraph written statement released on Aug. 4.

Schofield wrote that Kruger had brought in his laptop computer for routine maintenance.

"The town's IT contractor found files of a questionable nature," the mayor's statement read. "The files were forwarded to the mayor for review. After a brief inspection of the files, the mayor called the RCMP. The RCMP, upon initial inspection, seized the laptop for further analysis."

Schofield wrote that, due to the sensitivity of the matter, Kruger agreed to resign.

Schofield was out of town last week and unavailable for further comment.

Kruger had little to say on the matter, beyond expressing his irritation with the "lack of professionalism" on the part of the mayor with releasing his statement and a Hay River newspaper for reporting on it without contacting him.

"I was completely blindsided by this," he said.

Other than that, Kruger had no comment.

The RCMP would not confirm or deny whether an investigation is underway.

"We won't and we can't comment on issues where there are no charges," said Cpl. Wes Heron, the media relations officer with the RCMP's 'G' Division in Yellowknife.

Kruger, 19, was the youngest town councillor ever elected in Hay River and possibly the NWT when he was voted onto council in October 2009.

When he resigned, the reason given was that he was planning to attend post-secondary education in the fall.

In fact, he will be leaving later this month to begin classes at Grant MacEwan University in Edmonton.

At the time of Kruger's resignation, Schofield praised his contributions to council.

"It's unfortunate to see him go. We wish him all the best," the mayor said, noting the outgoing councillor put in a lot of time and effort for the town.

Kruger offered a youth voice on council, the mayor added. "So he did bring that unique insight."

At the time of his resignation, Kruger also expressed satisfaction with his time on council.

"I loved it," he said. "It was definitely a really good experience."

At that time, Kruger said it is possible he may one day seek to return to council.

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