Nova ScotiaA former undercover police informant is suing the federal government and the RCMP for abuse he says he suffered while working as an underage operative in the Maritimes.Paul Derry says he was abused while working as underage operative in the MaritimesBlair Rhodes · CBC News · Posted: Oct 10, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours agoPaul Derry has launched a civil lawsuit for the abuse he says he suffered while working for the RCMP. (Travis Golby/CBC)A former undercover police informant is suing the federal government and the RCMP for abuse he says he suffered while working as an underage operative in the Maritimes.Paul Derry started working undercover at the age of 15. At 17, he says he infiltrated a child sex ring operating out of a motel in Moncton. Now, more than 40 years later, Derry has launched a civil lawsuit for the abuse he says he suffered while working for the police. Derry said the experience has left him with questions.“What were you thinking when you put a 17-year-old, or even a couple of years before a 15-year-old, what were you thinking to use somebody like that?” Derry said in an interview earlier this week.The language in his lawsuit is even more blunt.“The essence of the original claim is the RCMP sent a minor into a location where they knew minor Paul Derry was going to be molested.”Paul Derry started working undercover at the age of 15. At 17, he says he infiltrated a child sex ring operating out of a motel in Moncton. (CBC)A statement of defence has not yet been filed. CBC News contacted the RCMP about the allegations. In response, a spokesperson said the RCMP cannot provide details because the matter is before the courts.While Derry is asking for damages in his lawsuit, he said he doesn’t expect to get much, especially not when compared to the time and effort he’s invested so far.“I understand the legal system enough to know that it never really gets you money and it really drains you a lot,” Derry said. “My psychologist asked me, ‘Do you think the principle was worth the cost?’ And it was one of the deciding factors. I came to the conclusion that, yes, the principle is worth the cost.”Derry says there is more than money behind his lawsuit. “I don’t want to see it happen to anyone else. I think they use vulnerable people too often for things and this is just a real good example of vulnerability.”Derry’s undercover work went on for years and led to the convictions of dozens of people, including Hells Angels hitmen.Death threatsHis work led to death threats and he spent several years in witness protection.“Any time I went to the Maritimes I was delivered into the hands of an Emergency Response Team member at the very least, if we didn’t have the whole [team]. Obviously, the whole team would have been in and around court for hearings.“But I still was always protected.”That’s why Derry was surprised and concerned when government lawyers proposed moving the lawsuit from the federal court, where he’d filed it, to New Brunswick provincial court in Moncton.“In 2019 it was deemed a threat area to me by the RCMP and now they’re asking me to go back there,” Derry said.“It’s quite obvious that I testified against the Hells Angels in Halifax, two hours away. They know that … that I did most of my work in Moncton. I did it for them. So why would they ever think that New Brunswick is the right venue?”His lawyer is more succinct in the lawsuit.“Dead witnesses and dead plaintiffs do not serve the interests of justice. The plaintiff cannot have a fair trial in New Brunswick,” the court document reads.“The RCMP should not even be suggesting it, especially without even having done a recent threat assessment.”Derry said even if he’s forced to agree to a change of venue, he is determined to see it through.He said if he had to do it over again, he’s not sure he would have filed a lawsuit.”I would have tried my best to get an inquiry into all of this as opposed to just filing a lawsuit, because, ultimately, I’d like to see this in the public for them to examine it and make all the changes that should be made.”He said the fight so far has taken a toll on him and his family.“I’ve resigned myself to the fact I’ll be dead and gone and hopefully my children will see some resolution to the things that they’ve had to deal with and the life they’ve had to live with, being around me.”Derry’s allegations have not been tested in court. MORE TOP STORIESABOUT THE AUTHORBlair Rhodes has been a journalist for more than 40 years, the last 31 with CBC. His primary focus is on stories of crime and public safety. He can be reached at blair.rhodes@cbc.ca
Former undercover informant sues RCMP, federal government
