Police deny MP's claims of child sex trafficking, terrified seniors and 'crack houses' in rural Newfoundland

Comments about rampant crime made by a Conservative Newfoundland and Labrador MP last month are getting pushback from the police — but despite protests from law enforcement, the politician is doubling down on his claims.

As first reported by The Independent, MP for Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame Clifford Small said his riding was seeing a rise in illicit drug use and child sex trafficking rings, noting residents were terrified they'd be burned in their beds. He said it had gotten so bad that fearful seniors were sleeping with baseball bats next to them.

"Towns of less than 1,000 people in my riding, with five crack houses operating, where young girls — teenagers — are being sold into prostitution," he said in the House of Commons on Sept. 26, when his party led its first failed non-confidence motion.

Small is doubling down on those claims, despite the Royal Canadian Mounted Police disputing them.

"I spend lots of time in my riding and I'm talking to people constantly and I'm having issues brought forward to me," Small told CBC News.

"They're not light matters. And folks wouldn't be telling me these things if it was a fairytale."

RCMP disputes claims

RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Jolene Garland said the police force hasn't heard anything about drug peddling or teenage girls being trafficked. "We don't have information that supports that statement," she said.

Garland also said Small's assertion about terrified seniors came from an incident between two families in a Stoneville, N.L., town hall. 

"It was an isolated incident and not a generalized issue in that community," she said on Monday during a press conference on an unrelated criminal matter.

She also said the case Small cited in the House, in which an RCMP vehicle in Lewisporte had been vandalized with the spray-painted words "back off," did not occur.

However, Small is firing back at those denials, saying a staff member attended the Stoneville town hall meeting where seniors said they were threatened.

"We've had multiple calls from the area.... Some people were having to sleep with guns next to their bed," said Small.

He added he's received numerous calls about safety from the region and he felt he had to speak out. He said he's spoken with residents "off record" about their concerns.

"If you took a ride down through those areas and you just spoke to random people, they would confirm to you exactly what I said in the House," said Small.

While Garland said there is no evidence of drug and underage sex trafficking rings in the area, Small reiterated that people in rural communities say it is happening.

"Again, you need to take a ride down through the area, talk to the folks and they'll all tell you what's going on. And in terms of RCMP investigations or whatnot, that's an issue to talk to them about," said Small.

He refused to name any of those towns. "I wouldn't say it in the House. I can't say it outside the House," he said, noting he also stands by his comments about a police vehicle being vandalized, saying he heard it from multiple sources.

Stoneville troubles

Stoneville local service district chairperson Nathaniel Osmond said churches, homes, cabins and businesses have been broken into and it has left residents frustrated and frightened.

"Right now we have to keep our areas lighted. Our doors locked," he told CBC News on Tuesday.

He also said residents say they've been threatened with being burned in their homes.

"Whether it's because of somebody that's under the influence of drugs or alcohol, you know, racing through town," Osmond said, "we need the RCMP on site. And one of the problems we have, of course, is being 45 or 50 minutes from Gander."

He also raised concerns that there aren't enough officers to deal with crimes. In a letter addressed to Premier Andrew Furey and dated Aug. 22, Osborne further detailed his concerns about crime in his community.

"It is a basic right for all of us to live in peace, but when senior residents of our town feel the need to have a baseball bat or some other type of weapon by their bed during the night because of the possibility of someone who has no respect for law ... [it] just causes undue stress and anxiety to those who don't deserve it," he wrote.

He wrote the community knows the individuals who are causing these problems but that the government needs to bring in tougher consequences to act as a deterrent.

"A slap on the wrist and a warning not to continue those behaviours is a joke to them and fining them is an even greater joke because they have no money to pay," wrote Osmond.

A copy of the letter was sent to a number of Liberal MHAs, as well as Small.

In response to questions about RCMP staffing in rural areas, Cpl. Garland said those detachments are doing the best they can with the resources available.

"Do we welcome additional resources in our province? Absolutely. Anywhere. Anytime," said Garland.

She added the RCMP works with the provincial government to assess policing needs throughout the province.

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