Ontario’s new top cop, Ron Taverner, purchased a Toronto home privately last year from one of Premier Doug Ford’s closest advisers in both politics and business.Property records show that Taverner, the incoming Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner and a current Toronto Police superintendent, purchased the three-bedroom cottage-style home on Church Street in the Toronto neighbourhood of Weston in July 2017 for $550,000.The seller was Simone Daniels, 33, a political operative who has had a decade-long association with Ford and is described in a Ford press release as “a long-time adviser.” At the time Taverner bought the home from Daniels, she was a senior executive at the Ford-family company, Deco Labels. She was part of his hand-picked transition team when Ford swept into office in June 2018 and is now deputy chief of staff in the Premier’s Office. Prior to her time at Deco, Daniels was executive assistant to Doug Ford when he was a city councillor.Real estate records show there was no MLS sale listing for the home, indicating it was sold privately. Taverner took out a $440,000 mortgage from National Bank at the same time he made the purchase. Mortgage documents do not specify the interest rate or term of the mortgage.The Star reached out, with detailed questions, to Taverner, Daniels and the Premier’s Office. Chief among the questions was this: Did the fact that the new OPP commissioner had a real estate transaction with a top adviser to Ford raise a conflict of interest in the eventual choice of commissioner, or does it affect the relationship between the OPP and the Premier’s Office going forward. There was no response as of Thursday morning.Daniels, who has worked for Ford in both politics and business, is listed on the provincial government’s telephone system as “Deputy Chief of Staff, HR Administration & Tour.” Thirty-six staff in the Premier’s office report to her, according to the pro ...
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