Toronto’s top cop has broken his silence about three off-duty officers who were charged in Spain following a “serious” incident.
Speaking to Newstalk 1010’s Moore in the Morning on Wednesday, Chief Myron Demkiw addressed the charges for the first time and confirmed that the officers have been suspended with pay.
“I confirmed their suspensions. We are making efforts to connect with the police in Spain to get the details we need for our processes to commence,” he said, noting that all three officers are now back in Canada.
Details of the incident have not been released publicly. The Canadian Press is reporting that three Canadian police officers who were vacationing in Barcelona were arrested in the alleged sexual assault and assault of a sex worker, citing several Spanish media sites.
The officers were not in Spain in any official capacity.
A Toronto police spokesperson previously confirmed to CTV News that three of its members were charged but did not go into the details of the incident. They said that the allegations levelled against the officers are “serious.” One of the three officers returned to Canada earlier this week.
Toronto police said they are not identifying the officers as Spanish court proceedings are ongoing. However, sources confirmed to CTV News and CP24 that the officers involved are Constables Evan Glennie, Rich Rand and Caglar Yigit.
In a separate statement, the Toronto Police Association said it was aware of the incident involving three of its members but provided no further details.
“As chief, what I’m focused on is making sure that we’re doing everything we possibly can to hold those members to account and to support the work that the Spanish police have done thus far,” Demkiw said, when asked about what responsibility he bears as the city’s top cop.
‘I’d like you to quit’: Chief speaks on allegations of police corruption
Demkiw’s remarks come after Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow and Coun. Shelley Carroll, the chair of the Toronto Police Service Board, weighed in on the allegations, with the former calling them “serious and troubling.”
Chow stated that Demkiw has “quite a bit of work” to do to restore the public’s trust in Toronto police in the wake of the allegations, combined with the fallout of an investigation into alleged corruption within the force and allegations of antisemitism from a former homicide detective.
“I’ll tell you what I’ll be telling recruits later today, and I’ve told sergeants recently: if you are a corrupt police officer, I’d like you to quit. I’d like you to not wear this uniform, because you don’t deserve to wear this uniform. And make no mistake about it, you better be looking over your shoulder, because we’re going to be coming after you,” Denkiw said.
Seven active and one retired Toronto police officer were charged in Project South, a police corruption probe unveiled in February which uncovered allegations of bribery and a complex conspiracy that allegedly involved the attempted murder of a senior Ontario corrections officer.
The allegations triggered Ontario’s Inspectorate of Policing to order an independent inspection, which will cover all 45 police forces in the province.
Last month, the Toronto Police Services Board requested an independent inspection into allegations of antisemitism, racism, and misconduct in the force made by Hank Idsinga, the former head of the Toronto police homicide unit, in his new book.
“As far as systemic issues around antisemitism, we’re not seeing evidence of that. We are definitely an organization made of people who are not necessarily perfect. We understand that we have incredibly good, strong governance, and we’re committed to delivering services free of any kind of bias or prejudice,” Demkiw said of Idsinga’s claims.
With files from The Canadian Press and Codi Wilson
