Canadian Mayor defies police to release video alleging crack use

Mr Ford’s lawyer and the mayor’s brother, a city councillor, attacked Police Chief Bill Blair for talking publicly about the video, despite acknowledging it does not provide enough evidence to file charges against the mayor.

Police announced on Thursday that they had recovered the video during a massive surveillance operation of an associate suspected of providing drugs to the mayor.

Dennis Morris, Mr Ford’s lawyer, said Mr Blair acted as “judge, jury and executioner” when he said he was “disappointed” in the mayor. Mr Ford’s brother Doug said the chief erred when he made his personal opinions known.

Mr Ford had claimed the video didn’t exist and has vowed not to resign. But voters could have the final word on the strange career of the populist mayor. Mr Ford has promised to run for a second term next year.

“I have no reason to resign,” he told reporters with a smile, as his office welcomed visitors to check out its Halloween decorations.

The embattled mayor, who is the butt of jokes on US late night television, said he couldn’t defend himself because the affair is part of a criminal investigation involving an associate, adding: “That’s all I can say right now.”

Mr Ford faced allegations in May that he had been caught on video puffing from a glass crack pipe. Two reporters with the Toronto Star and one from a US website said they saw the video, but it still has not been released publicly. Mr Ford has maintained he does not smoke crack and that the video did not exist.

He has long criticised the Toronto Star, accusing the paper of trying to force him out. The police department’s revelations vindicated the paper’s reporting.

Mr Ford was elected mayor three years ago on a wave of discontent in the city’s outlying suburbs. Since then he has survived an attempt to remove him from office and has appeared in the news for his increasingly odd behavior.

But the pressure ramped up on Thursday with all four major dailies in the city calling on him to resign.

Cheri DiNovo, a member of Ontario’s parliament, tweeted: “Ford video nothing to celebrate Addiction is illness. Mayor please step down and get help?”

Mr Blair said the video, recovered after being deleted from a computer hard drive, did not provide grounds to press charges against Ford.