Inuit organizations, family ask RCMP to investigate fraud claims surrounding twin sisters

Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. and the Qikiqtani Inuit Association say they've asked the RCMP to investigate whether a family claiming to be part Inuit committed fraud.

Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. (NTI), which oversees the enrolment of Inuit under the Nunavut Agreement, said in a news release Thursday that twin sisters Amira and Nadya Gill have been removed from the enrolment list, in what they claim is the first instance of this kind.

The enrolments are part of the Nunavut Agreement, the largest Indigenous land claim settlement in Canada. Under it, Inuit are granted rights and benefits, including scholarships, health care and use of Inuit land.

As first reported by Nunatsiaq News, the twins, who are 24, have claimed to be Inuit, though NTI confirmed to CBC that neither they nor their adoptive mother have received funding from NTI.

NTI also said it will not be doing interviews regarding the Gill sisters at this time.

Thursday's news release said the sisters were added to the list in 2016 after the woman claiming to be their adoptive mother, Karima Manji, applied on their behalf. Manji had identified an Inuk woman as their birth mother, the organization said.

But that woman, Kitty Noah, isn't related to the twins, according to her son, Noah Noah.

CBC has made several attempts to reach the twins and Manji, but has not been successful.

In an interview, Noah Noah said NTI showed him the enrolment forms claiming Kitty as the birth mother. The documents he described seeing match the details from Thursday's news release. He said he saw Kamira Manji's signature on the form as the applicant, and Kitty Noah's name was listed as the birth mother.

CBC has viewed the application for the Gill sisters' enrolment, which Manji signed on Feb. 28, 2016. She stated in that application that she is the adoptive mother.

NTI would not show CBC Kitty Noah's name on that application, citing legal reasons because they haven't publicly named her yet.

CBC has not been able to confirm with the Gill sisters whether they knew or were involved in their enrolment, or if they believed at any point they were Inuit.

Family 'flabbergasted' by claims

Noah Noah, who described his mother as a vulnerable person, identified himself to CBC as her guardian because of health concerns and her ability to communicate. CBC did not interview Kitty Noah, but she was present during the interview with Noah Noah.

He said he felt "gutted" when he learned about the situation, and said Kitty was also shocked to find out someone had used her name on the forms.

"She was just as flabbergasted as we were, that they were claiming that she was their birth mother," he said.

"There's no relation at all."

He said the forms he was shown had no father listed. He, too, contacted the Nunavut RCMP to see if they could investigate possible fraud.

The family was surprised, too, to see Manji listed as the person who applied — a familiar name, since Karima Manji dated Noah Noah's father in Iqaluit in the '90s.

"That would have been, I suspect, the only way she would have known any Inuit names," he said.

Claims of Inuit heritage

Liam Gill, the sisters' older brother, told CBC in an email that to the best of his knowledge, he and his sisters share the same biological parents. He said he isn't close with his family and does not identify as Indigenous.

He said as far as he knows, both of his parents immigrated to Canada.

The twins both claimed to be Inuit when they launched an online business together, Kanata Trade Co. That business sold masks with Indigenous artwork on them, among other things.

They have also been featured by Indspire, which provides grants to Indigenous students and has given Amira bursaries in the past.

In a statement Friday, Indspire said it's aware of the allegations and is waiting to see what comes of NTI's investigation into the sisters' identity claims.

It said it will "act accordingly" once that investigation is finished.

Separately, Nadya Gill is a soccer player and studied law at Queen's University in Ontario.

CBC reached out to Durant Barristers, the Ontario law firm where she was working. The firm said she had been placed on a leave of absence while they do an internal investigation. It also said the Law Society of Ontario had been made aware.

"We find it entirely unacceptable for anyone to falsely claim to be Indigenous and use it for personal gain," said Erin Durant, the firm's founder, in an email.

Amira, who also attended Queen's University, studied civil engineering and received several bursaries and scholarships earmarked for Indigenous students.

No response yet from twins

In Thursday's news release, NTI and the Qikiqtani Inuit Association said they have asked the Gills to provide evidence of an Inuk birth parent, but have not yet received a response.

They said the Qikiqtani Inuit Association also identified another application from Manji from 2018, where Manji claimed to have been adopted by two Inuit from Iqaluit. That application had been denied.

CBC has viewed that application as well. It is dated March 7, 2018.

NTI has a "robust" enrolment process, the organizations wrote.

Paul Quassa, one of the signatories of the Nunavut Agreement who was president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. back when it was called the Tunngavik Federation of Nunavut, told CBC earlier this week that the enrolment process is clear about who can and can't be enrolled.

"We have to remember that this land claims agreement is constitutional, protected, it's under the constitutional law — the highest law of Canada," he said. 

"If any fraud or any wrongdoings are done within this Nunavut land claims agreement, it is only right for enforcement to look into it."

The Canadian Press reported Jean Teillet, a Métis author, lawyer and Indigenous rights advocate, told them she isn't aware of charges being levelled in any similar case in Canada.

She said fraudulent claims of Indigenous heritage are harmful because they take away opportunities from people who actually are Indigenous, and can create distrust about Indigenous identity.

"We're just seeing more and more and more of these coming to the fore," she told The Canadian Press.