Thunder Bay police Const. Peter Ritchie has been charged with stealing and breach of belief, CBC has realized.
In line with court docket paperwork obtained by CBC, property was stolen this July. Ritchie was arrested on Oct. 10.
Ritchie faces charges of theft of property valued at $5,000 or much less, in addition to breach of belief.
Not one of the allegations have been examined in court docket.
Ritchie was sworn in as a Thunder Bay Police Service (TBPS) constable in April 2019, in accordance with the service’s Fb publish. Ontario’s sunshine checklist reveals Ritchie was paid $114,627 in 2022 as a first-class constable.
Police say officer charged was suspended with pay
The day after Ritchie was arrested, TBPS introduced an officer with the TBPS had been criminally charged with theft below $5,000 and breach of belief.
The officer going through charges was not been named within the launch, however there is just one present officer with that mixture of charges earlier than the courts, confirmed a TBPS spokesperson in an e mail to Ontario Chronicle.
It carried out an inside investigation after receiving a criticism, stated a information launch the police service issued in regards to the charges late Friday afternoon.
“The officer has been suspended with pay in accordance with laws. As this matter is now earlier than the court docket, the Thunder Bay Police Service is unable to offer additional remark or data,” a information launch stated.
“Sustaining public confidence is a high precedence and I thank those that displayed the braveness to talk out,” stated Chief Darcy Fleury within the launch.
TBPS going through different scrutiny
The fees in opposition to Ritchie come amid stepped-up scrutiny of the TBPS.
Final week, Ontario’s inspector basic of policing introduced he would consider how the TBPS conducts demise and missing-person investigations, and its compliance wit the province’s policing laws.
A number of different officers have additionally been criminally charged, for causes aside from these involving Ritchie.
Constables Taylor Auger, Ryan Dougherty, Andrew Frankow and Michael Moore have been charged with assault inflicting bodily hurt in separate incidents in 2023 and 2024.
Employees Sgt. Michael Dimini is scheduled to go to trial in 2025 for assault, breach of belief and obstruction of justice charges.
Former police chief Sylvie Hauth and ex-Thunder Bay police lawyer Holly Walbourne have been charged with a number of obstruction and breach of belief offences in April 2024. Each issues will probably be again in court docket subsequent week.
