4 Toronto police officers charged with perjury, obstructing justice
Chief Mark Saunders confirms charges at morning news conference
Toronto mayor's daily news conference LIVE 11:59:59
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Four Toronto police officers have been arrested and charged with 17 offences — nine counts of obstructing justice and eight counts of perjury, Chief Mark Saunders told a news conference this morning.
Saunders would not comment specifically about the case. Mayor John Tory is expected to speak about the charges, at a 9 a.m. ET news conference that CBC.ca will stream live.
The four officers charged are:
- Const. Jeffrey Tout, 41, 17 years of service, assigned to 55 Division. It is alleged he provided false court testimony, and is charged with two counts of obstructing justice and two counts of perjury.
- Det. Const. Benjamin Elliott, 32, nine years of service, 55 Division. Charged with three counts of obstructing justice and three counts of perjury.
- Const. Michael Taylor, 34, 11 years of service, 51 Division. Charged with two counts of obstructing justice, one count of perjury.
- Det. Const. Fraser Douglas, 37, 14 years of service, 55 Division. Charged with two counts of obstructing justice, two counts of perjury.
The charges arise from the arrest of Nguyen Son Tran on January 15, 2014. The investigation was carried out by TPS Professional Standards.
Charges against man dismissed
Last September, an Ontario Superior Court judge dismissed charges against the man, who was accused of possessing heroin on Jan. 13, 2014.
Justice Edward Morgan concluded the officers concocted a false story about why they stopped the man and searched his car.
Morgan also ruled the officers falsely testified they found loose heroin powder on the dashboard, which led to a search that uncovered 11 more grams of the drug wrapped and hidden behind the car's steering column.
Morgan ruled the drugs seized during the search were not admissible as evidence and dismissed the charges against Tran.
Toronto police spokesman Mark Pugash and Mike McCormack, head of the police union, wouldn't comment on the case.
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