Ottawa police are now investigating a Quebec man who is alleged to have illegally worn a Canadian Forces uniform during Remembrance Day ceremonies at the National War Memorial.
His chest adorned with medals, the man wore a paratrooper’s beret and the green DEU jacket of the land forces, with the ranks of sergeant.
The Department of National Defence has now confirmed that Franck Gervais is not a member of the military.
“Investigation launched in light of numerous inquiries about a man at the Remembrance Day ceremony in Ottawa,” the Ottawa police said on its official Twitter account Thursday afternoon.
It added that “the man possibly made unlawful use of military uniform or certificates.”
Social-media photos also show Mr. Gervais getting married in uniform.
Canadian Forces personnel raised questions about Mr. Gervais within minutes of his appearance on national television on Tuesday, noting many mistakes with the way he dressed as a soldier.
Their suspicion was eventually confirmed by the Department of National Defence. “The Canadian Armed Forces have no indication that Mr. Franck Gervais is a member of the military,” the department said in a statement.
It added that “such activities are a disservice to the proud men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces, who earn the right to wear their uniforms through their hard work and the sacrifices they make for our country.”
During the Remembrance Day ceremony, Mr. Gervais stood in the crowd and spoke briefly when questioned by reporters from the CBC and the Ottawa Citizen.
“For me, first it’s to remember what people have done for us in the past and the future,” he told the CBC’s Diana Swain.
“We fought together. It’s brothers,” he told the Citizen.
His appearance raised alarms bells among viewers with military background. His beret appeared too small. He didn’t have the red sash that infantry senior non-commissioned officers normally wear on formal occasions. He sported fancy sunglasses and had a Vandyke beard with a soul patch.
He wore a Royal Canadian Regiment cap badge and had insignias suggesting elite soldier status, such as paratroopers’ wings and the “torch” badge of the patrol pathfinders, specialists who are deployed in enemy territory ahead of the main fighting forces.
Unfortunately for Mr. Gervais, among the CBC viewers was a a member of the Royal Canadian Regiment who had been with the airborne, Michael Womack, a warrant officer based in Wainwright, Alta. He started a drive on Facebook to unmask Mr. Gervais.
“Hope I am wrong, but something was off about him,” WO Womack wrote a few minutes after seeing the CBC interview.
WO Womack found Facebook photos of Mr. Gervais’s wedding in which he wore a uniform next to his bride. Again, there were errors. He wore a red sash but it was draped on the wrong shoulder and there was another regimental badge on his beret. He wore an officer’s braided aiguillette.
“If someone can verify anything that backs him up let me know and I will retract it. But I am not holding my breath on that happening,” WO Womack wrote, asking if other Forces members could corroborate Mr. Gervais’s military status.
By Wednesday, DND confirmed that Mr. Gervais was not with the Forces.
Mr. Gervais lives in a red-brick bungalow on a rural road in the Outaouais region, on the Quebec side of the capital region.
A woman who answered Mr. Gervais’s phone said he would not comment. She said they had been getting threats on the phone.
Mr. Gervais works as a carpenter, assembling hardwood stairs for Potvin Construction, a Rockland, Ont., firm. He has worked there for a decade and sometimes mentioned his military service, a fellow employee said.
Records indicate that Mr. Gervais has appeared in municipal court in Quebec for minor offences such as driving without a licence.
In its statement about Mr. Gervais, DND noted that “falsely impersonating a Canadian Armed Forces member is an issue to be taken seriously and is covered under section 419 of the Criminal Code of Canada.”
Unlawfully wearing a military unform is not a common offence, but a Winnipeg resident pleaded guilty to the charge two years ago.
Josh Tuckett had claimed he was a corporal who had served in Afghanistan and Haiti. While he faced a maximum sentence of six months, the judge noted that such penalty would be applied only if the deception had a more sinister aim. Since his masquerade gained him no concrete benefits, Mr. Tuckett received a discharge.
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Commentary by the Ottawa Mens Centre
When it comes to SHPOS, this character is going to spend some time in jail
and no doubt, be diagnosed with a serious personality disorder.
When it comes to SHPOS with serious personality disorders, Canadians need to
spare a thought for the victims of Marguerite Isobel Lewis, a very nasty woman
with a penchant for fabricating Evidence against Male Victims of Domestic
Violence.
Marguerite Isobel Lewis wears the uniform of a lawyer, she is an officer of the
court, a lawyer for the Ontario Criminal Cartel's Ottawa Branch, The Children's
Aid Society of Ottawa where she Fabricates Evidence and is expected to be
another Ontario Government Appointee as a Judge of the Ontario Superior Court of
Justice.
Marguerite Isobel Lewis is Ideally suited to be a Judge of the Ontario Superior
Court of Judge. She is an expert at Fabricating Evidence and has show an ability
to engage in Fabrication of Evidence against Male Victims of Domestic Violence.
The Clown who wore the uniform he was not entitled to, is a sick example of
humanity but so far, there is no evidence that he has actually engaged in Crimes
against Humanity or crimes against the Administration of Justice.
Ottawa is riddled with Criminals in Power and Authority who commit atrocities,
crimes against the administration of justice and children and operate with the
full approval and blessing of the Judges of the Ontario Superior Court of
Justice who, will see Revenge and abuse anyone who brings to public attention
their own offensive Crimes against humanity and in particular, crimes against
the Administration of Justice.
If you don't like Priests or school teachers who abuse their positions of trust,
its time for Canadians to take a good look at the Vile Scum of Humanity who have
Power and Authority in Ottawa and who flagrantly abuse that power on a daily
basis while dressed up as Judges of the Ontario Superior court.
Ottawa Mens Centre.