Premier Doug Ford has weighed in on the corrupt police officer scandal that was detailed by York Region Police in an investigation named Project South last week and the upcoming probe by Ontario’s Inspector General of Policing.
Ryan Teschner, Ontario’s Inspector General announced on Monday that he’s going to be looking at all 45 police forces across Ontario, in the wake of the Toronto Police Service announcement that 7 police officers and 1 retiree are facing various charges, including allegedly passing along information to organized crime and drug trafficking.
Ford described the upcoming investigation as a “review,” and despite the allegations, voiced his support for rank-and-file officers.
“I just want to make sure that the people of this province understand that our police are there to support us, just to keep our community safe, and I believe 99 per cent of them do. Yes, are there are a couple bad actors in any organization? Yes, they’re going to be held accountable,” said Ford on Tuesday at a press conference outside of his office at Queen’s Park.
“Talking to front-line police officers that I do, they are frustrated and angry, more than the people are, but this investigation or review, I should say, is going to make sure that we continue to have the greatest police in the entire world.”
On Monday, Teschner spoke about his plans for the wide-reaching investigation.
“Organized crime is insidious, and … we have to ensure that our organizations are sufficiently strong to prevent and where necessary, detect and intervene,” Teschner said at Queen’s Park.
Teschner said that the inspection would examine the following issues: supervision; screening and vetting during recruitment and throughout an officer’s career; access and clearances for police databases; management of evidence and property; and substance abuse and fitness for duty.
Some police associations and critics see Teschner’s probe as too broad, as opposed to digging into the alleged corruption that seems to be centred on Toronto’s 12 Division.
Ford disagreed with those concerns.
“I have confidence in Ryan Teschner, he’s going to dig deep. He’s not going to leave any stone unturned. And this is also supported by all our chiefs right across the province, the commissioner and everyone else. They’re more frustrated than the people right now, and the police officers, front-line police officers, are frustrated as well. We have to have trust in our police services right across the board, and I’m confident they’ll do a great job,” said the premier.
