Thunder Bay Police Service Chief Darcy Fleury responds to recent charges against the former TBPS Chief Sylvie Hauth during a press conference in Thunder Bay, Ont., on April 15.David Jackson/The Canadian Press
The Thunder Bay police chief is acknowledging some residents’ eroding trust in the service as his predecessor and other high-ranking members of the force face criminal charges.
But Chief Darcy Fleury, a former veteran RCMP officer brought in to lead the embattled service last year, says his team is committed to rebuild confidence and provide fair policing to the community.
Fleury held a news conference today after ex-chief Sylvie Hauth and the service’s former in-house lawyer were arrested last week as part of an ongoing investigation into allegations of misconduct by members of the force.
Hauth and former in-house lawyer Holly Walbourne both face charges of obstruction of justice and breach of trust for allegedly making false statements to the police board and the Ontario Civilian Police Commission.
The commission investigated allegations of misconduct in 2022 and charged Hauth under the Police Service Act for allegedly overseeing an improper criminal investigation into the former police board chair and then allegedly trying to cover up her involvement, but Hauth resigned just before she was set to go before a police oversight tribunal.
The latest criminal allegations come after the December arrest of officer Mike Dimini who was charged with two counts of assault, and one count each of breach of trust and obstruction of justice for alleged offences taking place in 2014, 2016 and 2020.