“We’re not walking away from this relationship because we have a vested interest in that organization being representative of the community.”
Members of Ottawa’s Somali community say they are shocked and troubled by allegations that the Ottawa Police Service has wiretapped and surveilled five of its Somali officers, but say the community’s relationship with the police service is too important to walk away from it.
A bombshell $2.5-million lawsuit alleges the OPS wiretapped and surveilled the five officers and their family members for months, accusing the police force of being racist and discriminatory of its own sworn members. The Somali officers had been encouraged to join the force in an effort to improve its relations with Ottawa’s racialized community and diversity efforts, the lawsuit alleges, but the shroud of suspicion surrounding the five officers has damaged their reputations and careers.
“We are deeply shocked and troubled by the alleged discriminatory surveillance and harassment of Somali officers and their families,” Bille Abdalla, operations manager of the Somali Centre for Family Services, said Thursday at a news conference where members of Ottawa’s Black and Somali communities gathered to condemn the police force and to call for change.
Abdalla said the claims that Ottawa police engaged in surveillance based on racial stereotypes and biases were “not only alarming, but reveal systemic issues within the force.”
He said it was “unacceptable” that the five officers, who were recruited to repair the OPS’s “strained” relationship with Ottawa’s marginalized communities, “are now facing racial slurs, backlash, and invasions of privacy,” calling it “a severe misuse of authority” and “betrayal” of the police force’s values.
“The trust of our community in police is predicated on expectations of fair, equitable and impartial policing,” Abdalla said. “The allegations that the OPS has perpetuated a culture of racism and discrimination severely undermines this trust and questions the integrity of the entire force.”
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Abdalla said Ottawa’s Somali community was the largest Black community in the city and a significant stakeholder in the Ottawa Police Service.
Community leaders had attempted to address their concerns directly with police, he said, but “unfortunately, these efforts have been met with inaction,” Abdalla said. “Our safety has not been adequately addressed, leading to a severe erosion of trust and confidence in the police.”
The Ottawa Police Service and Ottawa Police Services Board did not immediately comment on Thursday.
Abdalla said the Somali community wanted to see a transparent and independent investigation into the wiretap and surveillance allegations, “with clear accountability for any identified misconduct.”
The relationship between the Ottawa Police Service and the city’s Black and Somali communities has been strained in recent years.
In 2016, 37-year-old Somali-Canadian Abdirahman Abdi died in hospital one day after a confrontation with Ottawa Police Service officers during an arrest. An officer responded to a call at a Hintonburg coffee shop where a man had allegedly been sexually assaulting people before running down the street to the front steps of an apartment building on Hilda Street. Another constable called as backup used “plated” gloves to punch Abdi several times in the head.
Const. Daniel Montsion was later charged with manslaughter, aggravated assault and assault with a weapon, but a judge found Montsion not guilty in October 2020.
A coroner’s inquest has been called to examine the circumstances of Abdi’s death.
Police have also yet to make any arrests one year after a brazen shooting that killed two men and injured six at a Somali wedding. Members of the Somali community say their unresolved questions about the progress of the investigation have left them disappointed and frustrated.
And, earlier this year, Ottawa police Chief Eric Stubbs said he deeply regretted that a Black man had been violently — and erroneously — arrested by police in a case of mistaken identity.
Mohamoud Hagi-Aden, a founder of the Somali Centre for Family Services, said Ottawa’s Somali community had put time and resources into OPS diversity and equity initiatives.
“The community is so disappointed about what is happening,” Hagi-Aden said, “especially the people who the community has put its trust in them.”
He called the wiretap and surveillance allegations a shock and “a big setback” for the relationship between his community and the police, but “we’re not going to walk away,” he said.
Hagi-Aden called for the leaderships of the police service and police services board to admit their mistakes and to take steps to repair the relationship.
“We’re not walking away from this relationship because we have a vested interest in that organization being representative of the community,” Hagi-Aden said. “It’s very important the board and leadership come forward and deal with it in the most positive and urgent way.”
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