First Nation’s chief says RCMP must look into Furlong accusations

BURNS LAKE, B.C. – The northern B.C. First Nations community at the centre of a controversy over abuse allegations against former Olympic chief John Furlong says the RCMP must look into the matter.

Chief Wilf Adam is calling for a thorough investigation of the accusations stemming from Furlong’s time as a teacher at a Catholic school in Burns Lake, B.C., saying there are serious, longstanding issues that need to be addressed.

The RCMP have said they are looking into all the allegations around the case.

Students have come forward to accuse Furlong of physical and verbal abuse in the late 1960s and early 1970s, saying he hit and slapped some of them, kicked some and hit one with a hockey stick.

One former student told CBC News that she recently recovered memories of sexual abuse.

Furlong has categorically denied the allegations and says he’ll sue.

Furlong says he reported to the RCMP that someone approached him before the 2010 Games and said that for a payment, the story would go away.