An airline whose crew was detained in the Dominican Republic along with its passengers after warning authorities of 200 kilograms of cocaine hidden in an internal ward called on the federal government to intervene before a court hearing that could force them back into prison.
Eric Edmundson, CEO of Pivot Airlines, sent a letter to Foreign Secretary Melanie Jolie asking him to call on the Caribbean country to ensure the safe return of the crew to Canada.
“For more than 24 days, our crew has been threatened with life, inhuman treatment and arbitrary detention for diligent crime reporting and the prevention of a potential plane crash,” Mr Edmundson wrote. “Time is of the essence.”
Five Pivot Airlines crew members and six passengers were due to return to Canada from Punta Cana on a charter plane on April 5. Before takeoff, a mechanic discovered alleged smuggling on board and police in Canada and the Dominican Republic were warned. If the plane had taken off, Mr Edmundson said, the location of the smuggling could have caused an uncontrollable fire.
Dominican authorities detained all 11 people on the plane, sending men and women to separate facilities, according to the airline.
On April 6, the Dominican Republic’s National Drug Control Directorate issued a statement saying the group had been “questioned to determine their possible involvement” in an attempt to supply illegal drugs. Two hundred kilograms of cocaine hidden in eight fitness bags were seized from the plane.
Mr Edmundson said the men had been sent to a prison for drug offenders and had been harassed and beaten. The airline has hired someone to ensure that Pivot staff are fed and protected to some degree in prison, he said.
The group has received a guarantee, but has no right to leave the Dominican Republic. Local prosecutors are trying to appeal the court’s bail decision. It is unclear when the hearing will take place. Mr Edmundson said prosecutors had no evidence linking the crew to cocaine.
The death threats continued after their release, and the airline hired private security guards and relocated the crew regularly to avoid detection. Passengers have a separate legal advisor and do not stay with airline staff.
Mr Edmundson said crew members feared that returning them to prison would be a death sentence.
“It’s a one-way ticket,” he said. “They don’t think they will get out of this prison if they are brought back.”
Global Affairs Canada said in a statement that it was aware of the incident involving Pivot Airlines and that Canadian officials were monitoring the situation, engaging with local authorities and providing consular assistance. Adrian Blanchard, Ms Jolie’s spokeswoman, also said that Parliamentary Secretary Maninder Sidhu had recently traveled to the Dominican Republic and met with government officials.
Mr Edmundson said the government needed to do more.
“We think the government needs to step up and intervene. “It is unacceptable for the Canadian airline’s crew to be detained illegally,” he said.
The federal government is urging Canadians to exercise extreme caution when traveling to the Dominican Republic, citing violent and opportunistic crimes.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic did not respond to a request for comment.
Family members have confirmed the identity of one of the passengers, such as Calgary-based photographer Britney Wojciech-Harrison. Cousin Bella Harrison said the family learned of her imprisonment last Thursday from a Dominican lawyer.
“It just looks like a movie, and when it happened, I could hardly believe it,” Ms. Harrison said, adding that her cousin was on vacation in Punta Cana. “She is not well. … She’s just trying to keep her head above water.
Ms. Harrison said Global Affairs Canada had provided little information to the family because of the provisions of the Privacy Act. She said Ms. Wojciech-Harrison was safe.
“I’m really shocked because I’ve been proud all my life to be Canadian and just to see how little they care about this person who will literally never be involved, I just don’t understand that,” she said. Harrison said. “How can they just forget about 11 people?”
Our morning and evening newsletters are written by Globe editors, giving you a brief summary of the most important headlines of the day. Register today.
Add Comment