A former police recruit has been charged by Toronto Police with impersonating an officer and sexually assaulting two girls under 16 years old.
A document filed in the Ontario Court of Justice says the accused was arrested on April 5 after crimes that allegedly occurred on March 30 and 31.
The court-filed document alleges 11 criminal counts including sexual interference, sexual assault, and making, possessing, and accessing child pornography. The suspect is also accused of falsely representing himself to be a police officer.
These allegations have not been proven in court. On Wednesday, the Toronto Police Service would not comment on the case.
Lawyers for the defence and prosecution could not be reached.
A spokesman for Ontario’s law-enforcement ministry said that the accused had recently been a recruit at the province’s training centre for aspiring police officers.
“We can confirm this individual is no longer at the Ontario Police College,” said Greg Flood, a spokesman for the Solicitor-General’s ministry, in response to questions from The Globe and Mail. He did not say when the man attended the college or on behalf of which police service.
Under Ontario’s laws, prospective police officers must be offered a pre-employment letter by a police service prior to attending the training facility.
While the Solicitor-General’s ministry funds the college, its training module relies on a certificate program overseen by the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, which announced last month it will be releasing a revised Personality Research Form meant to measure personality traits that are most relevant to policing.
One year ago the provincial government announced it would waive the training fees that recruits usually pay to attend the Ontario Police College.
A publication ban has been placed on the identities of the alleged victims in the criminal case. A bail hearing took place earlier this week. A court appearance is scheduled for May 8.
Colin Freeze