Lino Zambito cuts ties with UPAC, calls for independent investigation

Lino Zambito says he will no longer collaborate with Quebec's anti-corruption unit (UPAC) after he was named in an affidavit that details the unit's efforts to uncover who was leaking classified informationto the media.

The former construction boss and Liberal Party organizer who pleaded guilty to fraud and corruption charges in 2015 claims he had no part in feeding documents about ongoing investigations to journalistsand called the allegation "deplorable."

"I can't believeUPACis attacking my credibility,"he said.

During a news conference on Sunday, Zambito said he had been recently working withUPAC investigators as an important witness in other investigations, but that he will no longer do so.

"I want nothing to do with them until there's a cleanup higher up," he said.

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He said he is not the suspectUPACis looking for and suggested that the leaks came from within the unit itself.

The affidavit by a UPAC inspector, which was unsealed Thursday, accompanies an application for a search warrant. Its claims have not been tested in open court.

The investigation identified four suspects alleged to be the sourceof the leaks: Zambito, Liberal MNA Guy Ouellette, and former UPAC employees Stphane Bonhomme and Richard Despaties.

Ouellettewas arrested last October in a sting by UPAC, but charges were never laid against him.

The affidavit also alleges Despaties, a retired Sretdu Qubec officer who worked as an analyst for UPACuntil he was dismissed in October 2016, wasfeeding information to Zambito.

On Sunday, Zambitodenied knowing both Bonhommeand Despaties, saying he wouldn't be able toidentify them if they were in the room.

Calls for an independent investigation

In light of the allegations, Zambitoalso called for the Quebec government to launch anindependent investigation into UPAC.

"I am asking Minister [Martin]Coiteux to react," he said.

Zambito said that Bill 107, which seeks to increase the jurisdiction and reinforce the independence of UPAC, also needs to be changed.

He said thehead of UPAC should benominated with at least two-thirds of the vote by the National Assembly to ensure the integrity of the unit.

Earlier this week, opposition parties Parti Qubcois and Qubec Solidaire also called into question the idea of giving UPACmore power.

He said that while investigators on the ground are doing "colossal and formidable work," a new leader at the head of UPACwould restore the public's confidence in the unit.

"There is a cleanup that has to be done within the administration of UPAC," he said.

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