Police execute search warrants at an Edmonton medical building on March 18 in relation to the AHS scandal.JASON FRANSON/The Globe and Mail
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith defended her government on Thursday during her first appearance in the legislature since police executed search warrants as part of their criminal investigation into the province’s health care procurement controversy.
The RCMP this week searched the head office of MHCare Medical Corp., one of the government suppliers at the centre of the controversy.
The company, which has received $600-million in contracts from Alberta Health Services, is owned by Edmonton businessman Sam Mraiche. Mr. Mraiche had ties with Ms. Smith and members of her government, as well as public servants at Alberta’s health authority.
In 2022, MHCare signed a $70-million deal with Alberta Health Services to import children’s acetaminophen and ibuprofen during the North American shortage of those medications. Very little of the medicine was ever used and most of it was either donated to other countries or destroyed.
MHCare has denied any wrongdoing, as has Mr. Mraiche.
During Question Period at the Alberta Legislature on Thursday, Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi highlighted the relationship between the government and Mr. Mraiche, who played host to cabinet ministers and political officials in a box suite during Edmonton Oilers games.
“It is the biggest government scandal in Alberta history,” Mr. Nenshi said. He noted that the RCMP searches are now in their third day.
Ms. Smith responded that she would not comment on “policing matters.” However, she referenced a report from Raymond Wyant, a retired judge from Manitoba whom she appointed to investigate the procurement practices for the children’s medication deal and chartered surgical facilities at Alberta Health Services and the provincial Health Ministry.
“We received a report from judge Raymond Wyant, which clearly found that no politician, no political staff and no government of Alberta official had any wrongdoing in this matter,” she said.
In Mr. Wyant’s report, his conclusions about politicians and political staff came with caveats.
“When I find that there was no wrongful interference by any government official in the matters concerning this report, that only means that I found no evidence of such, but I am not in a position to make a final and absolute determination,” Mr. Wyant stated in the October document.
Mr. Wyant did not have the power to subpoena or hear testimony under oath. Some people declined to be interviewed or to answer certain questions.
Ms. Smith said the controversy is limited to Alberta Health Services.
“This is an AHS matter, looking at AHS personnel, and we would ask for everyone to be patient while the RCMP does its work.”
Mr. Wyant, in October, found that both Alberta Health Services and the government ministry failed to meet their own standards regarding a deal for a private surgical centre in Edmonton. He also determined that the health authority fell short regarding the 2022 deal for children’s medication.
The health care controversy exploded in early 2025, when Athana Mentzelopoulos alleged in court documents that the government fired her from her job as Alberta Health Services’ chief executive because she was investigating potential conflicts of interest between her staff and private companies, including MHCare.
The government denies her allegations; it alleges it fired Ms. Mentzelopoulos for incompetence. None of the allegations have been tested in court. Neither Mr. Mraiche nor MHCare is party to the lawsuit.
Scott Hutchison, a lawyer for Mr. Mraiche, on Wednesday evening said in an e-mailed statement that his client and the company “have consistently maintained that they have not engaged in any improper conduct.”
“They remain confident that any fair and objective investigation will reach that conclusion,” he added.
RCMP, in a statement to The Globe and Mail, confirmed that it executed multiple search warrants related to its investigation into allegations of procurement irregularities in Alberta’s health care system.
Ms. Smith’s government is closely tied to Mr. Mraiche. The Edmonton businessman was with her campaign team in a Calgary hotel room the night she won the 2023 provincial election. Justice Minister Mickey Amery is also a long-time friend and related to Mr. Mraiche.
On Thursday, Mr. Amery told reporters that the RCMP has not approached him. He also said he is not aware of any cabinet ministers who have been interviewed.
When asked whether Alberta is considering settling with Ms. Mentzelopoulos, he said: “That is not something I’m prepared to talk about at this time.”
Ms. Mentzelopoulos is seeking $1.7-million as part of her wrongful-dismissal lawsuit against the government and Alberta Health Services.
Mr. Amery, in an interview with The Globe in 2025, said his ties to Mr. Mraiche do not conflict with his job as the province’s top lawyer.
“We all have our personal relationships,” he said in the interview last April. He said he has neither a business nor professional relationship with Mr. Mraiche.