KJIPUKTUK (Halifax) – On the first anniversary of his wife’s burial, Mike Foley gets a message from the RCMP…..again. If you recall the first part of Mike’s story, published in the Nova Scotia Advocate in April 2017, you’ll remember that Foley was being pursued by the Department of Community Services and the RCMP for fraud. Foley was supposed to sell his tattoo equipment while on social assistance as Community Services deemed it an ‘asset’ to be liquidated despite the fact that the department’s policies clearly state that any asset that helps a client to set up a business or get a job can be exempt from that rule.
The RCMP first contacted Mr. Foley on April 17, 2017. The Constable wanted to come to Foley’s house and take a statement regarding the fraud charges. Foley did not want them to do that as his 14 year old daughter, Ashley, is severely autistic and is still suffering from trauma after her mother died. Ashley is terrified of losing her father as well. A visit to the house from the RCMP might send her into a tailspin.
Instead, Foley agreed to go the local RCMP detachment and give a statement. On the day agreed upon for Foley to go to the detachment, he hired a babysitter for Ashley, got in his vehicle and started to drive. He barely made it a kilometer down the road when the RCMP constable called him and said he wouldn’t be there as he was being called away on a more pressing matter. The constable said he would call him and set up another appointment.
The next appointment was made and the babysitter was hired again but this time Foley didn’t even make it out of the driveway. The constable called and, with a witness present (the constable was on speaker phone) Foley was told that the constable was again pulled away to ‘something more important’ and he would get in contact with Foley again ‘soon’.
The month of May passed; the month of June passed. Foley decided to try and apply for social assistance again as he has medication he needs but cannot afford. He applied for social assistance in early July but tells us that he did not receive any response to his application. Instead, he receives another phone call from the RCMP claiming that the investigation of ‘fraud’ is on again. Foley plays the recording of the message the constable left for him. “You’ve had enough time to collect your emails and evidence together for your side” and again wants a statement from Foley.
Foley is shocked. The ‘investigation of fraud’ has been hanging over his head for months with no resolution or movement in sight. He believes his re-application for social assistance set the phone call from the RCMP off again and, meanwhile, he and Ashley still don’t have any help, or even a response, from the local social assistance office. Meanwhile, Community Services proclaims on its website that its services will provide “…excellence in service delivery, leadership and collaboration with our partners.” It makes Foley wonder just what is their definition of ‘excellence’ and just whom are they collaborating with. Foley and Ashley continue to get by with very little money and no medications.
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the people must take this matter must to the courts .. top level people know this .. if they don’t that speaks to the level of incompetence in leadership of NS .. that also speaks to the level of apathy in the legal system, or allowing money to rule over morality .. every lawyer with an ounce of integrity should be knocking down doors to take up this case pro-bono … for the people of NS . whom they are after all people .. but all leadership in NS knows that if they disturb the shit that is a lot of morally stunted people with good paying government jobs without even really knowing what their jobs are, that they will be ostracized and pushed off the gravy train..
the RCMP should be ashamed but the truth is, certain officers are married to certain social workers or workers with community services and really do feel they have a moral high ground that exempts them from rule of law .. I have seen this over and over .. My self – I have had RCMP officers in my life that had such high regard for their ability to be a positive influence in people’s lives, which is a testimony to me that officers have no mandate to use their personal feelings of superiority over struggling citizens ..
Community Services and their lawyers hate poor people and are trained to fuk them up if at all possible.
This has being their way for decades
I am getting tired of my posts not being published
Upon further thought, Mr. Foley should apply for a restraining order/peace bond against this officer as there is obviously NO open fraud case. Call the Ombudsman, leave a paper trail to show in court that He has done everything possible to deal with his matter in a lawful way and let the evidence show the workers invovled in this pathetic attempt to boost their self esteem has been openly and proudly perpetrated against Mr. Foley.
so sorry this fraud charge is still alive. Who can authorize a “cease and desist”…RCMP? Minister of Community Services?
The family should qualify for a legal aid lawyer. Take the rcmp and ss to court. Approach their local MLA. He/she should be able to solve this. I suppose if someone in their area did a fundraiser ss would claim it as an asset. Crazy. Crazy. Good luck. God plz Bless this family.