Three Toronto police officers charged while on vacation in Barcelona have returned to Canada and been suspended with pay, Toronto police say. The force is examining whether it can legally seek to suspend them without pay.
Police spokesperson Stephanie Sayer confirmed their return and paid suspensions under Ontario’s policing act, according to a Canadian Press report published by CHCH on May 20.
The update follows confirmation from Barcelona’s Mossos d’Esquadra police force on Tuesday that three men had been arrested for sexual assault and injuries after an incident in a taxi the previous week.
Several Spanish media outlets had reported that three Canadian police officers vacationing in Barcelona were arrested in connection with the alleged sexual assault and assault of a sex worker.
Sayer said Monday that three Toronto officers had been charged in Barcelona while on vacation. She did not identify the charges or confirm the accounts published by Spanish media.
Toronto police’s confirmation of the officers’ return and suspension does not provide further details about the charges. The force is waiting for additional information from Spanish authorities as it examines the policing act and the legality of seeking suspensions without pay, Sayer said.
The officers’ current status is therefore suspension with pay; the force has not announced a decision to seek unpaid suspensions.
Coun. Shelley Carroll, chair of the Toronto Police Service Board, has also responded to the reports from Spain. She described them as serious and troubling and said public confidence in Toronto police must be reinforced on an ongoing basis.
