An Abbotsford Police officer was verbally reprimanded for exchanging inappropriate messages using police mobile data terminals, according to the annual report released Tuesday by the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner (OPCC).
The report lists “substantiated allegations” that were concluded by the OPCC from April 1, 2018 to March 31, 2019.
The officer who exchanged the inappropriate messages did so between Nov. 2, 2015 and Jan. 23, 2016, according to the report.
The report says the cop was among several officers from various police agencies involved in the messages, but their content is not described.
The OPCC concluded that a verbal reprimand was the correct form of discipline for the officer, and no further action was required.
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A second Abbotsford officer received a written reprimand for removing sensitive police-related materials from the Abbotsford Police Department (APD) – beginning in December 2011 – and storing them in a container at his home, according to the report.
The report does not indicate the nature of the materials.
The officer was further required to take training on “human source handling” and to sign the current APD policy on confidential sources.
The OPCC – a civilian oversight agency – concluded that no further action was required against the officer.
The annual report details disciplinary or corrective measures that were taken against officers in Abbotsford, Delta, Vancouver, New Westminster, Saanich and other areas that have municipal police departments in B.C.
The officers’ names are not released.
The OPCC opened a total of 1,326 files in the period covered in the latest report.
Of those, 127 were opened in Abbotsford. Four were ordered to be investigated by APD request and one was a mandatory external investigation.
The OPCC does not lay criminal charges, but looks for infractions under the Police Act. Officers deemed to have committed wrongdoing face disciplinary measures ranging from a written reprimand to a suspension or firing.
