Prime Minister Stephen Harper's former chief of staff, Nigel Wright, has begun testifying at the Ottawa trial of suspended Senator Mike Duffy.
Crown prosecutor Jason Neubauer is questioning Wright about details regarding his professional background, as well as the functions of the Prime Minister's Office.
The much-anticipated testimony of Wright, a key Crown witness, is expected to focus on the bribery charge against Duffy.
Wednesday marks the 37th day of the judge-only trial, which last sat on June 18, marking the start of the second hiatus of the high-profile trial that began April 7 in the Ontario Court of Justice in Ottawa. This third phase will continue until Aug. 28, and, with more time assuredly needed, break until it would resume again in mid-November.
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Duffy has pleaded not guilty to 31 charges of fraud, breach of trust and bribery related to expenses he claimed as a senator and later repaid with the $90,000 he received from Wright.
The first two phases of the trial have barely touched on Wright, with Crown prosecutors Neubauer and Mark Holmes mostly focusing on Duffy's expenses, travel claims and residency issues.
However, one Crown witness, a forensic accountant, did carefully trace the path of $90,000 from the account of Wright to an Ottawa-based law firm, then into the bank account of Duffy, and finally to the receiver general of Canada.
Harper denied knowing of payment
In his opening statement of the trial, Duffy's lawyer, Donald Bayne, accused Wright of leading a scheme that would force Duffy to admit he made mistakes regarding his Senate expenses and make it appear he had repaid $90,000 to stem the political fallout.
Wright was dismissed (or resigned, it's not exactly clear which) as the prime minister's chief of staff after the arrangement between Wright and Duffy was made public, in May 2013. Wright has said that his "actions were intended solely to secure the repayment of funds, which I considered to be in the public interest."
Nigel Wright, former chief of staff to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, makes his way through a crush of media as he arrives to testify at the criminal trial of embattled suspended Senator Mike Duffy in Ottawa. (Justin Tang/Canadian Press)
Wright said he never advised Harper about this transaction, and Harper has denied knowing about the arrangement.
However, in a Feb. 22, 2013, email to Benjamin Perrin, the prime minister's then adviser and legal counsel, Wright suggested that he had received the go-ahead from Harper on an initial plan to cover Duffy's expenses with a Conservative Party fund.
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