The City of Edmonton shelled out $182,521 on security costs for Mayor Amarjeet Sohi since 2022, according to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request obtained by the Western Standard. Sohi did not have any costs for a security detail for the last four months of 2021, according to the FOI request. However, the City of Edmonton said it spent the most on security in 2023 at $92,438. It confirmed it spent $46,451 on Sohi’s security in 2022. While it did not have a complete total for 2024, it said it put $43,632 to it for that year. It would not provide how much each expense was. City of Edmonton Corporate Access and Privacy Office senior corporate access and privacy analyst Richelle Brazil said some of the records the Western Standard requested were withheld from disclosure under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIP) Act. “We have severed the excepted information so that we can disclose to you the remaining information in the records,” said Brazil. “The severed information is withheld from disclosure under sections 17(1) (Disclosure harmful to personal privacy), 18(1) (Disclosure harmful to individual or public safety), 20(1)(k) (Facilitate the commission of an unlawful act or hamper the control of crime, and 20(1)(m) (harm the security of any property or system, including a building, a vehicle, a computer system or a communications system), of the FOIP Act.” Brazil pointed out these totals were the amount incurred by the City of Edmonton necessary for Sohi’s security and does not include the costs of its staff and internal assets used to provide protection to him. Office of the Mayor of Edmonton Communications Director Justin Draper responded by saying Sohi and his team take direction from City of Edmonton Corporate Security. “Security services are not requested by the Mayor or the Mayor's Office and are provided as per assessments by City administration,” said Draper. An FOI request by the Western Standard to obtain taxpayer-funded costs of Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek’s private security detail was denied in 2022. READ MORE: City of Calgary won’t reveal co$t of Gondek’s private security detailIn an effort to obtain the costs of Gondek’s private security detail for the three months following her election as Calgary mayor, the Western Standard filed an FOI request with the City of Calgary. FOIP coordinator and deputy city clerk Nicole Dengis released details on the City of Calgary’s corporate security operating budget and actual spending for the requested timeframe, but she included all security services provided to the city. Records published in October showed Canadians paid more than $30 million per year to keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau safe. READ MORE: Cost of security to protect Trudeau surging over $30 million a yearThe cost had sharply increased since 2021 and was higher than it had been in 20 years — a 32.3% increase. Trudeau and his family receive protection from the RCMP. Sohi and various Edmonton city councillors spent about $62,655 on decor, furniture, and installation and moving costs, according to a May FOI request obtained by the Western Standard. READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: Sohi, Edmonton councillors spent $63K on decor, furnitureThe City of Edmonton said Sohi’s office spent $16,418 on decor between 2021 and 2023. It said the $16,417 breaks down to $85 in 2021, $8,448 in 2022, and $7,885 in 2023. While Sohi’s office spent the most on decor, councillors’ offices spent $7,538 through their common budgets between 2021 and 2023. These costs were $774 in 2021, $3,750 in 2022, and $3,013 in 2023.
