Mystery man leaves wallet full of questions in Saskatoon

Matt Johnson is not interested in talking about why he had a wallet full of ID cards from Louisiana, New York and Hong Kong when he got arrested in February in Saskatoon while driving a black Grand Cherokee rental from Calgary.

The 45-year-old American lawyer got kicked out of Canada a few weeks later, on March 7, after pleading guilty in Saskatoon provincial court to auto theft and stealing gas. Johnson was sentenced to 17 days, which he had already served, then taken by Canadian Border Services Agency officers and turned over to U.S. authorities.

Johnson already had ongoing legal troubles in California. He was wanted in Orange County on outstanding warrants for burglary, carrying fake ID and grand theft auto, and subject to a five-year domestic violence restraining order. 

A former girlfriend from Saskatoon, now living in Ventura County, got the restraining order in January after Johnson harassed her for two years. CBC obtained the 81-page file from the county courthouse.

"I ended the relationship in July 2024," she wrote. CBC is not naming the woman because of concerns for her safety.

"This did not go well and led to threats, stalking, harassment, identity theft, anonymous letters to my work, sending nude photos to my ex and colleagues, and even impersonating the CIA."

She says Johnson claimed he is a CIA agent who "works in the shadows."

Before getting shipped out of Saskatoon, Johnson signed a promise not to contact the woman's family in Prince Albert.

Johnson left a trail of victims and questions since showing up in Saskatoon last October. His movements are a complicated narrative detailed across documents from courthouses and police reports on both sides of the border.

CBC contacted Matthew John Johnson by phone and text in California over four days in March.

"My only reason for speaking to you is to ascertain why on Earth you would want to cause further harm by bringing the court of public opinion into anything that surrounds me," he wrote.

"I'll speak to you, but it will be of little benefit."

The Saskatoon part of the story began when Matt Johnson dropped off a rental car at Fargo International Airport on Oct. 13, 2024, according to the court documents.

He arrived in Saskatoon four days later, Oct. 17, the same day the Superior Court of California in Orange County issued a bench warrant for his arrest for burglary, fake ID and grand theft auto charges.