Transport Canada has reportedly launched a formal investigation into a massive house party held at an Anmore house June 1 in which two helicopters swooped in to a raucous scene thick with whiskey, high-end sports cars, bikini-clad influencers and at least one overdose.
In an email to The Tri-City News, Transport Canada spokesperson Annie Joannette wrote that the department is aware of the helicopter landing at the Anmore property and is taking the incident “very seriously.”
But according to Anmore Mayor John McEwen, Transport Canada informed Anmore village hall that the department had launched an official investigation into the landing of two helicopters at the party.
Wednesday, RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Michael McLaughlin told The Tri-City News there is not much officers can do if a party organizer decides to hold a similar event in the future. That’s because the RCMP needs to see evidence that crimes are being committed if they are going to arrest people, McLaughlin said at the time.
“It is not illegal to land a helicopter in a private residence with permission,” McLaughlin said, adding it's also not illegal to park "a shiny monster truck" on a private driveway.
But according to Transport Canada, landing a helicopter in a built-up residential area can be dangerous. It's also illegal without the permission of the property's owner.
And while senior Transport Canada spokesperson Simon Rivet neither confirmed nor denied that a formal investigation had been launched, he urged anyone with firsthand information to email [email protected].
Concerned with how the RCMP handled the incident, McEwen said he met with Coquitlam RCMP's officer-in-charge, Insp. Annette Fellner, Thursday and that he was told the RCMP would be reviewing how it handled the incident.
“Why they didn't they go into the house? Why weren’t they more engaged with the fact that the helicopters were landing in the backyard?” said McEwen. "From what I've been led to believe, there's a bit of a disconnect between the Transport Canada regulations and what rules [the RCMP] follow.”
Coquitlam RCMP did not respond to requests for an interview by the time of publication.
McEwen added his office has received other information that puts the legality of the entire party into question. He said an email from the offshore owner of the Anmore property stated party organizer Justin Plosz’s lease expired on May 31, the day before he threw “the grand finale,” as Plosz put it in an interview earlier this week.
As for McEwen, he’s focused on making sure another party like the one held last week won’t happen again.
“I’m not going to let this just sort of go into Never Neverland. We will be getting to the bottom of this to assure our residents that this doesn't happen again,” said McEwen. “And if any regulations were broken, that those people are going to be fined and taken to task on them.”
— With file from Gary McKenna
