An extensive third-party investigation has cleared Norfolk County staff and elected officials of any involvement in a recent confidentiality breach that sparked concern between Norfolk and neighbouring Haldimand County.
The breach came to light on February 28, when Norfolk’s Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) was alerted by Haldimand’s CAO about an anonymous Facebook post that contained confidential correspondence between the two municipalities.
The post alleged that the leak originated from a Norfolk staff member, suggesting internal tensions over the ongoing health unit merger discussions.
That was Norfolk CAO Al Meneses speaking on the matter.
The post included photos of printed emails.
Given the serious implications of the breach—particularly for inter-municipal cooperation and public trust—the CAOs of both counties agreed to launch an independent investigation, retaining a professional investigative firm to conduct a full review.
Both Norfolk and Haldimand committed to sharing the investigation costs equally.
Over the following weeks, the investigator was granted unrestricted access to municipal IT systems, including emails, text messages, and interviews with both staff and elected officials.
On May 9, both municipalities received the final confidential report.
The 40-page document—summarized in a redacted version provided to council—delivered a key conclusion:
“There are clues in the emails, which assist in determining where they were printed. The emails were printed by someone from Haldimand County.”
Mayor Amy Martin spoke about the leaked emails on Tuesday during a special council meeting on the matter.
While the post was officially approved to go up the day after the provincial election, she said it was clear what the intentions were.
Martin added that the emails lacked necessary context, contributing to a misleading narrative.
It was noted that Norfolk County cooperated fully throughout the investigation, making all relevant individuals and materials available.
In Haldimand County, there was one notable exception—Mayor Shelley Ann Bentley.
According to the report, before being contacted for an interview, Mayor Bentley retained legal counsel. Through her lawyer, she declined to participate in the investigation.
The investigators did, however, speak with Bentley’s assistant, who acknowledged that she printed the same documents for the Mayor. The assistant explained that when she learned about the investigation, she wanted to disclose her involvement voluntarily, rather than have it discovered independently.
The report also noted Bentley’s political connections to Bobbi Ann Brady, Martin’s former opponent and current MPP.
However, due to Bentley’s refusal to participate, the report determined the following:
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It was not determined why Mayor Bentley requested the documents be printed.
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It was not determined who, if anyone, Mayor Bentley may have shared the printed documents with.
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It was not determined who took the photographs of the printed versions.
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It was not determined whether the documents were leaked intentionally or accidentally.
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It was not possible to determine who else had access to the documents between the time they were printed and when they were posted on Facebook.
Martin addressed this connection during the same meeting, expressing her belief that the leak was a coordinated effort.
When asked how Mayor Bentley could simply decline the interview, council was informed that the investigator did not have the authority to compel participation. All cooperation with the investigation was voluntary.
One official with stronger powers in this regard would be the Integrity Commissioner.
With this in mind, Norfolk County Council has voted unanimously to involve the Integrity Commissioner to further investigate the matter and determine if any formal accountability measures should be pursued.