Gondek's lawyer challenges police plan to keep seized phone
Former Calgary mayor's device remains locked; investigators acknowledge they're relying on future technology to unlock it.
The day's top stories, food & events — every morning at 7. Unsubscribe anytime.
Police have more than "hope" that technology will allow them to extract data from former mayor Jyoti Gondek's seized cellphone, Det. Matthew White testified Wednesday—but when pressed by Gondek's lawyer, the officer couldn't say when, or if, that capability will ever arrive.
Rebecca Snukal, representing Gondek, challenged Calgary Police Service's application to extend possession of the iPhone 17 for another nine months. CPS lawyer Doug Taylor is asking Justice Allan Fradsham to allow investigators to hold the phone for a full year, betting that technology will evolve to crack the passcode.
White acknowledged in cross-examination that police have never asked Gondek to provide the passcode voluntarily. He also admitted investigators are waiting for a future version of Cellebrite software—the tool digital examiners use to access locked phones—to support "brute force" extraction on her model of iPhone with current operating software.
"There is no timeline on if/when this capability will be available," White stated in his affidavit.
Snukal pressed: "You're relying on hope."
"There's hope but there's also the idea that technology is continuing to evolve," White replied, noting that Cellebrite must adapt each time Apple releases a new iPhone version.
The investigation centres on a proposed land-use bylaw that lost on a 6-6 tie but passed after former councillor Sean Chu tabled a reconsideration motion and changed his vote. Police allege David White, a planning consultant, offered campaign donations exceeding the maximum allowed to councillors in exchange for tabling a reconsideration motion.
Searching White's phone "yielded evidence of the offences," according to White's affidavit. He also determined that Gondek "provided guidance to White on a tactic to approach another councillor in an effort to secure a reconsideration motion."
White admitted to Snukal he already has a copy of exchanges between Gondek and the consultant but cannot determine if information has been deleted. "I'd like to see them both side by side," he said.
The hearing before Fradsham is ongoing.