Former VicPD board member wants probe into collapsed drug case

A lawyer who resigned from Victoria's police board over concerns about transparency says the city's residents deserve an independent investigation of the circumstances that led to the collapse of a major drug prosecution.

PaulSchachter says he has filed a complaint against the Victoria Police Department over allegations of misconduct by officers who allegedlymisled the court about the involvement of a disgraced colleague in the initial stages of a probeinto a $30-million fentanyl trafficking ring.

Details of Project Juliet's demiseemerged last week in a B.C. Supreme Court decision which said officers"obscured" the fact former Const. Robb Ferris was part of thefirst iteration of the investigationby filing a record of the case suggesting it began a month later than it actually did.

The Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner (OPCC) is investigating the actions of the now-retired officer who led Project Juliet when charges were brought against three accused.

But Schachter says citizens need to know if larger issues are at play.

"The board has the power under the law to require an independent investigation. This could be a more effective investigation than individual complaints of officer wrongdoing in which the OPCC looks at individual conduct in isolation," he told the CBC.

"There seems to be a major systems failure here for which VicPD management should be held responsible rather than simply blaming a lower level person who was likely acting under orders."

'We are now left to wonder'

According to B.C Supreme Court Justice Catherine Murray, Ferris was kept on as part of the 'Strike Force' team which laid the groundwork for Project Juliet in May 2020 so as not to alert him to the fact he was himself under criminal investigation.

Ferris was arrested in June 2020 and later resigned from the department on the eve of a disciplinary proceeding that substantiated 19 charges of misconduct under the Police Act.

He was never criminally charged.

According to Murray's decision, the investigation rebranded as Project Juliet continued without Ferris asremaining team members set about relearning everything they knew about the case.

But following arrests, a report to Crown Counsel made no mention of Ferris or any investigation prior to June 2020. Murray says that when Crown finally learned about the omission, the charges were stayed.

Schachterresigned from the Victoria and Esquimalt Police Board in 2022, citing a lack of transparency about how operations are conducted to determine if the force is using its resources effectively.

Last week, he filed a "Service or Policy"complaint with the co-chairs of the police board.

Thecomplaintcites six specific areas of concern, including "a failure in general direction and management" and "inadequate or inappropriate" policies to prevent "obscuration of the existence of essential facts withrespect to records, reports and disclosures."

Schachter said he has since learned his complaint was submitted to the OPCC, the entire police board and Victoria Police Chief Del Manak, as required by B.C.'sPolice Act.

"The residents of Victoria and all of B.C. deserve a police department with integrity they can trust, not one that is willing to lie to and deceive the Crown and the judiciary for the sake of getting a conviction at all costs," he said in an email.

"We are now left to wonder whether those accused are guilty or just caught up in police fabrication. The rights that were trampled on are there to protect all."

'Responsible for covering up the misconduct'

Schachter also echoed concerns raised by Ferris, who told CBCTuesday that he was being used as a "scapegoat" by the department to draw attention away from actions of officers which occurred long after he left the force.

"Constable Ferris and his serious misconduct was the trigger for the breakdown of the investigation but not the cause of the problem," Schachter said.

WATCH | Former VicPD police officerclaims he's now being used as a 'scapegoat':

Ex-cop says he's being used as a 'scapegoat' in collapsed drug prosecution

6 months ago

Duration 2:33

A former Victoria police officer who left the force after a disciplinary investigation claims he's now being used as a "scapegoat" by the department to avoid scrutiny of leadership decisions, which led to the collapse of a major drug prosecution.

"VicPD management is responsible for covering up the misconduct and, by doing so, putting the success of the criminal investigation into jeopardy."

Esquimalt MayorBarbara Desjardins, who is co-chair of the police board,declined to comment on Schachter's complaint or Project Juliet.

Victoria's mayorthe other co-chairdid not respond to a request for comment.

The Victoria Police Department told CBC the board will receive the complaint at its next governance committee meeting"at which point they will decide a course of action."

"It would be inappropriate to comment on a complaint that hasn't yet been received," a department spokesperson said in an email.