Appeal court upholds acquittal of Nova Scotia woman in ‘Mr. Big’ sting
HALIFAX — A new Nova Scotia Appeal Court ruling raises fresh questions about the police use of so-called “Mr. Big” tactics, dismissing a Crown appeal in the case of a woman acquitted of being an accessory to murder.
The RCMP targeted Brittany Leigh Derbyshire in 2011 as a way of finding her friend Steven Skinner, an MMA fighter and murder suspect who was believed to have fled the country.
“Whatever (Derbyshire’s) role in illegal activities, it does not give to the police carte blanche to coerce confessions,” said the appeal court.
Two officers posing as outlaw motorcycle gang members approached the 28-year-old waitress in the underground garage of her Lower Sackville, N.S., apartment building, “wearing high-end tough guy clothes and gold jewellery,” according to the appeal court ruling.