Pivot Airlines crew seeking justice after 'cocaine cargo' detainment
It’s a story that just keeps getting bigger; a story that raises troubling questions about who knew what, and when.
W5 producer Eric Szeto and I have been digging deeper into the Pivot Airlines ordeal, now that the crew is safely back in Canada. They were detained under virtual house arrest in the Dominican Republic for eight months, after finding and reporting 210 kilograms of cocaine on their 50-seat jet.
Gathering for the first time since their release in December of 2022, the crew is demanding answers from the Canadian government about why they were left to languish for so long on the tropical island for "doing their jobs."
They thought they would be hailed as heroes. Instead, Dominican authorities accused them of being part of an international crime syndicate, even though they were never questioned and never charged.
Canada's Minister of Transport has promised an investigation. The RCMP cryptically says, "The RCMP does not confirm, deny, or release information pertaining to active investigations."
And yet neither transport officials nor the Mounties have interviewed the crew, nor have they shared details on the status of those possible probes.
Pilot Rob DiVenanzo tells W5, "I’ve gone through enough. I’m going to fight until we find out why this happened. I’m not going away."
His co-pilot, Aatif Safdar, is equally angered by the silence of Canadian authorities. "They don’t want to investigate. They don’t want to talk about it."
Four members of the Pivot Airlines crew reunite for the first time since their release from the Dominican Republic last December (W5)
Their ordeal began almost exactly one year ago.
On March 31, 2022, the five-person crew departed Toronto’s Pearson Airport for what was supposed to be a four-day charter.
Their nightmare began as they were preparing to leave Punta Cana airport in the Dominican Republic. A warning light led to the discovery of the drugs in the avionics bay of the plane.
W5’s initial investigation, , uncovered details about of a number of passengers on the flight. We revealed that the company that hired the charter didn’t exist. We exposed the man who paid for the flights: a small-time Edmonton real estate consultant named Vick Mander.
Former RCMP investigator Gary Clement has pored over the research W5 has compiled and says he can’t understand why the RCMP is being so silent about a conspiracy to smuggle hundreds of kilos of cocaine into Canada.
"This is not a complicated case. What surprised me is there wasn’t a number of RCMP investigators jumping all over this," he told W5. Among the crimes that he believes should be investigated: conspiracy to import cocaine, money laundering and possession of proceeds of crime.
The RCMP has not questioned the alleged money-man, Vick Mander, and there is no evidence that the passengers have been questioned, either.
The crew says their ordeal should be a red flag for any Canadian who travels to the tourist destination.
"We know that the Dominican Republic is a drug-source country. We need to really step up our efforts and be sure that Canadians that are flying in there are safe," Pilot DiVenanzo told W5.
"Airplanes continue to fly there. Canadians continue to vacation there. The responsibility has to be on the Canadian government to be sure that those Canadians are as safe as they can be."
File photo: Captain Robert Di Venanzo (left) was stranded in the Dominican Republic for eight months, from the spring until December of 2022.
W5 has exposed evidence of corruption at the Punta Cana Airport, specifically that an official airport truck was involved in transporting the duffle bags of drugs onto the plane and that to remove that evidence.
The crew, who pleaded for months for the Canadian government to get them home, felt abandoned while in the DR and say they continue to be abandoned now that they are home.
"Absolute silence still today," said frustrated flight attendant Alex Roznov.
About the Canadian government, co-pilot Aatif Safdar says: "They don’t want to investigate. They don’t want to talk about it. They don’t want to give answers."
W5’s new investigation reveals exclusive details about who was behind the smuggling conspiracy and what the RCMP knew about the plan, and when. Watch Saturday at 7 p.m. on CTV.
Do you have any tips on this story? Please contact Avery Haines or Eric Szeto
CTVNews.ca ÐÇ¿Õ´«Ã½
New Federal firearm buyback program has cost $67M, still not collecting guns after 4 years
The federal firearm buyback program has cost taxpayers nearly $67.2 million since it was announced in 2020, but it still hasn't collected a single gun.
No, these viral purple apples don't exist in Saskatchewan
If something looks too good to be true, it might be. That's the message from Saskatchewan horticulturists after customers have come into their stores hoping to buy purple apple trees this month.
The province's public security minister said he was "shocked" Thursday amid reports that a body believed to be that of a 14-year-old boy was found this week near a Hells Angels hideout near Quebec City.
Thousands of exploding devices in Lebanon trigger a nation that has been on edge for years
Chris Knayzeh was in a town overlooking Lebanon's capital when he heard the rumbling aftershock of the 2020 Beirut port blast. Hundreds of tons of haphazardly stored ammonium nitrates had exploded, killing and injuring thousands of people.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police has lost 205 firearms since 2020, including machine-guns
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police has lost 205 firearms since 2020, including more than 120 handguns and at least five fully automatic weapons like machine-guns.
Influencer couple denies leaving kids alone on cruise
For most people, dinner on a cruise ship is a time to relax. But when influencer couple Abby and Matt Howard decided to kick back with a dinner à deux, they ended up kicking up a storm.
PM Trudeau names Anita Anand transport minister after Pablo Rodriguez quits cabinet
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tapped Treasury Board President Anita Anand to take on additional duties as Canada's minister of transport on Thursday.
B.C.'s police watchdog is investigating the death of a woman who was shot by the RCMP after allegedly barricading herself in a room with a toddler early Thursday morning.
Tensions flare between Poilievre and Singh in the House after NDP says it will back Trudeau Liberals
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh got into a heated exchange in the House of Commons on Thursday, just minutes after Singh announced his party would not be supporting the Conservatives' first non-confidence motion against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government.
Local Spotlight
They say a dog is a man’s best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.
Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.
The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.
It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.
A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.
David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.
Edmontonians can count themselves lucky to ever see one tiger salamander, let alone the thousands one local woman says recently descended on her childhood home.
A daytrip to the backcountry turned into a frightening experience for a Vancouver couple this weekend.