Sudbury OPP officer pleads guilty to stealing evidence during moose hunt investigation
CTV
A veteran staff sergeant with the Ontario Provincial Police in Sudbury has been sentenced for stealing two items from a First Nations man and hiding what he did while his fellow officers searched for them.
A veteran staff sergeant with the Ontario Provincial Police in Sudbury has been sentenced for stealing two items from a First Nations man and hiding what he did while his fellow officers searched for them.
Straun Frederiksen, 53, received 12 months of probation, a criminal conviction is now on his record and he must complete 75 hours of community service.
He also faces a disciplinary hearing with the OPP.
The case began in 2019 when OPP in Sudbury made an arrest connected to an illegal moose hunt. Following the charges, several firearms, scopes, straps and accessories were seized.
The items were placed in the OPP property vault, for which Frederiksen was responsible. As part of a plea deal in November 2020, one firearm was to be returned to the First Nations man "to allow him to carry out his cultural traditions and hunt for sustenance purposes," the court decision said.
He requested a specific rifle and strap, which he said would be easy to recognize "as the strap attached to it had cultural beadwork on it and a scope."
The man "wanted the strap returned as it was a gift to him from his late wife and had sentimental and spiritual value to him," the decision said.
