Ottawa

Karen Duffy tells story on Peruvian TV

News weekly program airs segment titled ‘Mi Padre El Senador’

DUFFY-PUNTAFINAL

Karen Duffy appears on Punto Final, a news program in Peru.

Karen Duffy says she continues to dream of hugging the man she believes is her father. The Peruvian woman, who claims to be Mike Duffy’s unacknowledged daughter, made the comments to media in her home country.

“My Father the Senator” aired Sunday night on Punto Final, a weekly current affairs program on the Peruvian Frecuencia Latina network. The Lima resident told the program she still hopes the suspended senator will respond to a lawsuit she filed in Peruvian court seeking his recognition:

With a touch of telenovela-worthy drama, the program paints a picture of a love story that “altered the course of destiny” for Yvette Benites, Karen’s mother, who spent time in a jail in Kingston, Ont., and in an Ottawa halfway house following a conviction related to cocaine trafficking. When reporter Fabricio Escajadillo pressed Benites on how sure she was that Duffy fathered her daughter, she sharply rebuked him.

“Please—100 per cent. One thousand per cent,” Benites said, noting she hadn’t had relations with any other man in the period leading to her time in Canada, nor in the months after her return to Peru. “I am 1,000 per cent sure that she is the daughter of Mike Duffy, the Canadian senator.”

When asked to comment on the original Maclean’s story, Duffy wrote: “Your email contains untrue allegations, made by a convicted narcotics smuggler, and which go back more than 30 years. I will respond to any legal process from Peru in an appropriate manner. I will have no further comment.”

It’s been an eventful few days for Duffy, who, last week, was slammed with 31 charges related to the Senate expenses scandal. Karen Duffy says she holds on to the hope that he will respond to the lawsuit and “dreams of being able to give him a hug.”

In an email received on Monday morning, Jorge Alejandro Rázuri, Karen’s lawyer in Lima, told Maclean’s there have been no updates to the lawsuit, and he has yet to receive word of Duffy’s response.

Here is Maclean’s interview with Karen Duffy:

Looking for more?

Get the Best of Maclean's sent straight to your inbox. Sign up for news, commentary and analysis.
  • By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
FILED UNDER: