Canadian Forces L Col. Melanie Lake is being investigated by the Canadian Armed Forces over her role in an online group that supports Mriya Aid, an Ottawa-based charity. The investigation is aimed at determining the role of military personnel in the group and their wrongdoing.
Allegations against L Col. Melanie Lake
- Diverting $20,000 in donations that was fundraised for a medical battalion in Ukraine, because she believed they were far-right neo-Nazi medics.
- Self-dealing: purchasing $99,950 of fake Chinese NVGs from a Mriya Aid Co-Founder, Mitch Leedham
- Covering up that Mriya Aid had been previously warned by another NGO that Mitchell Leedham of AusCan Tactical provided subpar equipment
- Sending Ukrainian units into battle with fake NVGs without warning them that other units had already had issues
- Violating her ethical duties as a member of CAF
Mriya Report, which is run by Captain Joseph Friedberg, has been criticised for denouncing Ukrainian whistleblowers who questioned the quality of non-lethal equipment delivered to Ukrainian troops by the charity. Ukrainian journalist Olga Khudetska, who raised concerns about Mriya Aid, was threatened by the group.
Mriya Aid has tried to claim that it is not associated with Mriya Report, except they have shared quite a number of staff and volunteers. The Mriya Report was originally called Mriya Aid USA. On the day of the launch, Captain Joseph Friedberg, a Co-Founder of both Mriya Aid and Mriya Report, announced that Mriya Aid USA was the new Twitter space for Mriya Aid and that he had talked to Colonel Melanie Lake who gave her blessing.
Melanie Lake has been a frequent guest and contributor of the Mriya Report. In addition, the vast majority of funding for Mriya Aid originates from the Mriya Report.
