RCMP Officer Says Halifax Chemicals Investigation Began After Wife Came Forward

HALIFAX — The investigation of a Halifax man accused of possessing dangerous chemicals and threatening police began when his wife told the RCMP she felt her family's safety was at risk because of the materials he was storing, a Mountie testified Friday.

 

RCMP Sgt. Lisa Stuart told the bail hearing for Christopher Phillips that his wife came to police on Jan. 19 and told them her husband's mental health was deteriorating and he was behaving strangely.

 

Gosia Phillips told investigators her husband had osmium tetroxide in eight vials and possibly possessed uranium and she was fearful the chemicals posed a threat to her children's safety, Stuart testified.

 

"She stated Mr. Phillips had bragged about the osmium tetroxide to friends. ... He wanted to display the osmium tetroxide on ice on the table of a child's birthday party so everyone could see," Stuart told provincial court.

 

Osmium tetroxide, a toxic chemical, was found at 54 Lakeridge Ave. in a suburb of Halifax, court heard.

 

Stuart said police also found a plastic tube they feared was a pipe bomb but they later determined it wasn't an explosive device and was actually a sealed container for a vial of osmium tetroxide.

 

Phillips, 42, mouthed the words, "I love you," to his wife as she listened to the officer's testimony in court.

 

Defence lawyers routinely request publication bans on bail hearings, which judges must grant. But the defence for Phillips told the court Friday it wasn't seeking a publication ban in his application for bail nor would he seek one for any preliminary hearing. Judge Alanna Murphy told the court there would be no publication on the proceedings.

 

Police attempted to contact Phillips when he drove from Halifax to an Ottawa hotel, Stuart told the bail hearing, adding that computer analysis of his laptop indicated he had opened emails from an officer asking him to report to police but did not respond.

 

Stuart said officers broke down Phillips' hotel room door on Jan. 21 when he wouldn't respond to calls and knocks on the door.

 

When police entered the room, the words, "You are safe," were spelled out on torn pieces of paper and laid out on the floor, Stuart said.

 

Phillips was arrested and returned to Halifax, where he was charged with uttering threats and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose. He has elected to be tried by judge alone.

 

Under cross-examination by the defence, Stuart said none of the chemicals found at Phillips' two residences in the Halifax area were illegal and no charges of improperly storing them were laid.

 

Police have said the chemicals, which were found at a cottage and shed, were filled with chemicals in various states of degradation. The discovery prompted evacuations in Halifax and the Ottawa hotel where Phillips was arrested.

 

Last month, the Crown said outside court that it accepts that Phillips's trip to Ottawa was "completely unrelated" to any of the allegations he faces.

 

The RCMP have said the chemicals posed an extreme fire risk due to their volatility, but defence lawyer Mike Taylor said he believes the authorities overreacted to the potential threat based on information he received.

 

The accusation that Phillips threatened police was based on an email he sent to a friend that was misconstrued and Phillips believes he had the chemicals for legitimate reasons, Taylor said last month.