A sergeant with the Abbotsford Police Department (APD) was demoted to the rank of first class constable this year after “harassing and bullying behaviour” toward subordinate officers, according to the quarterly report of the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner (OPCC).
The report states that the sergeant yelled and screamed at the officers, and made “derogatory, berating and degrading remarks, including swearing.”
The period of the behaviour was between February 2018 and March 2019, and no member of the public was affected, according to the report.
The matter was investigated internally by the APD and resulted in the sergeant being reduced in rank for a minimum of one year.
The person, if deemed eligible, may reapply to be considered for a promotion, the report says.
The individual is further prohibited from serving as an acting supervisor for one year, must take “respectful workplace” training, and has been transferred out of the “special enforcement” unit to a patrol shift.
“According to the Deputy Chief, the Abbotsford Police Department takes respectful workplace complaints very seriously, and … the APD is committed to providing a workplace that is respectful and professional,” the OPCC report states.
The officer’s name is not released in the documents.
The OPCC’s first-quarter statistical report covers files that were either opened or concluded from April 1, 2019 to June 30, 2019.
The OPCC is a civilian-oversight agency for municipal police departments. It does not lay criminal charges, but looks for infractions under the Police Act.
Officers deemed to have committed wrongdoings face disciplinary measures ranging from a written reprimand to a suspension or firing.
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