A Toronto-based RCMP officer is facing human trafficking and animal cruelty charges that local police say involve a man lured to the officer’s home in Georgina from Mexico to work in “very poor” conditions.
York Regional Police say that in April, a man came forward to report he was hired from Mexico to come to a home on Bayview Avenue in Georgina, Ont., where he would tend to some animals on the property.
Investigators said the man endured “very poor working conditions that were not consistent with the agreement” he made with his employer.
On May 3, police said they arrested the victim’s employer.
Provincial Animal Welfare Services was called to the scene to check on the condition of animals on the property.
The RCMP says the man arrested, 44-year-old Yahsif Israel Mane Monter, is one of its constables.
He was working with the North Toronto Transnational Organized Crime Unit at the time of his arrest.
Mane Monter was charged with one count of trafficking in persons, one count of forgery, one count of cruelty to animals and three counts of possession of a prohibited device.
The Criminal Code identifies prohibited devices as firearm silencers, extended magazines, or a firearm barrel less than 105 mm in length.
Investigators in York Region say they believe there are additional victims who have not yet come forward to authorities.
The RCMP says Mane Monter is suspended with pay.
“His duty status will be continually assessed and an internal Code of Conduct investigation remains active and on-going,” The RCMP said in a news release issued on Tuesday.
“These allegations are serious and difficult to comprehend. As a police service, we work diligently to investigate instances of human trafficking and bring the offenders to justice, and we share this commitment with our law enforcement partners.”
