VicPD constable the ‘fall guy’ in corruption scandal, former officers claim
CTV
A former police board member and two retired officers are accusing the Victoria Police Department of letting one of its constables take the fall for a corruption scandal.
A former police board member and two retired officers are accusing the Victoria Police Department of letting one of its constables take the fall for a corruption scandal.
VicPD became embroiled in controversy last week when news broke the department allowed Const. Robb Ferris to work on a major drug case while he was being investigated by the RCMP for obstruction of justice and breach of trust.
After Ferris was arrested on June 18, 2020, a court record states investigators tried to conceal his involvement with the case, which resulted in a $30-million bust. As of Jan. 19, all charges were stayed in the case, dubbed Project Juliet.
Investigators misled Crown prosecutors, defence lawyers and judges into believing the investigation began on June 23, 2020, according to a decision by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Catherine Murray.
Only one of the VicPD officers named in Murray’s decision, recently retired Const. Kim Taylor, is being investigated under the Police Act for allegations of discreditable conduct and neglect of duty.
“If that investigation basically concludes that the constable was guilty and that’s the end of it, that would be a travesty,” said former Victoria and Esquimalt Police Board member Paul Schachter, who filed a Police Act complaint against the department late last week.
“It really does seem that Const. Taylor… is being set up to be the fall guy.”
