RCMP to hold regimental funeral Thursday for Alberta officer who died in crash

The RCMP say a regimental funeral will be held later this week for one of its Alberta-based officers who died in a crash while heading to help another officer.

The funeral for Const. Harvinder Dhami, a member of the Strathcona County detachment east of Edmonton, will be held Thursday morning at Millennium Place in Sherwood Park, Alta., and will be preceded by a procession from Bethel Lutheran Church.

Dhami, who was affectionately known as Harvey, died early on April 10 while driving to help other officers with a noise complaint.

The Mounties said Dhami's vehicle hit a large concrete barrier on a road northeast of Sherwood Park.

While police had said they would give more details on the crash investigation at a news conference Sunday, Cpl. Troy Savinkoff and Sgt. Deanna Fontaine told reporters the investigation remains ongoing and that police wouldn't speak to it yet.

Detachment Supt. Dale Kendall said at the news conference that Dhami responded to an "urgent request" for backup to assist a fellow officer who was attempting to make two arrests.

"Const. Dhami upheld his oath to protect and to serve to the very last moments of his life," said Kendall.

Dhami, who was 32, is survived by his wife, mother and two siblings.

Savinkoff said Dhami's family will be present for the funeral but has requested privacy.

"This is an event where we expect quite a large turnout from officers from various departments," he said, but didn't have an immediate estimate on how many people are expected.

Millennium Place will be closed to all but invited family members, friends and first responders, but RCMP say the public are welcome to line the funeral procession route. They say a live feed of the procession and funeral service will be provided on the Alberta RCMP YouTube channel.

Strathcona County says it will open its community centre for the public to view the funeral via the livestream.

Kendall said Dhami's family put community service first, noting it guided the career choices of his closest family members. His sister works in mental health services, Kendall said, while his brother and cousin work with the Peel Regional Police and the Vancouver Police Department respectively.

She said Dhami served meals to elderly members of the Punjabi community in Brampton, Ont., and served with Meals on Wheels for three years.