Saskatchewan’s police watchdog says a Saskatoon officer has been arrested following a year-long investigation into an allegation of assault during an off-duty social gathering from last fall, which involved more than a dozen off-duty officers.
The Saskatchewan Serious Incident Response Team (SIRT) says they have “reasonable grounds” to believe that an offence was committed by an officer during the gathering on Sept. 14 2024, after reviewing evidence and interviewing witnesses.
The agency began its investigation after being notified five days after the incident of an alleged off-duty incident involving several Saskatoon Police Service (SPS) officers.
Some of the witnesses SIRT interviewed include nine civilians and 23 SPS members, according to an investigation summary released by SIRT on Friday.
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SIRT investigators arrested the officer on Thursday and charged him with one count of assault.
In November of last year, five officers were suspended with pay for their involvement in the off-duty gathering.
Last month, three of the five officers were fired from the service as a result of an investigation conducted by the SPS’ professional standards division.
In a press release last month, police said the three officers were dismissed as they were “unsuitable for police service,” identifying them as two constables with nine and 10 years of experience and a special constable with two years of service.
The other two officers returned to work in April.
Police have yet to release the names of the dismissed officers or elaborate on what happened at the gathering last fall.
Saskatoon’s police chief, Cam McBride, says the police service is not releasing the accused officer’s name and that it will be released to the public shortly when in front of the courts.
“We’re not releasing that information right now for out of respect for the individual and the privacy of the individual,” McBride said.
“When that charge is heard at first appearance in court, that’s when the name of the individual will be made public.”
The officer facing the assault charge was released Thursday on an undertaking and will appear in Saskatoon Provincial Court on Nov. 27.
The SIRT independently investigates incidents where someone has died or suffered serious injury from the actions of on and off-duty police officers, while in police custody and for allegations of sexual assault or violence involving police.
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