MORE OFFICERS IN DRUG SQUAD TO BE CHARGED

Move Comes 15 Months After Recommendation By Task Force

Additional members of a scandal-plagued Toronto police drug squad will
be charged with Police Act disciplinary offences as a result of the
findings of an RCMP-led task force.

The corruption-related offences are expected to be filed this spring
- -- at least 15 months after they were recommended by the task force.

"The Toronto Police Service will seek to lay charges," confirmed Staff
Inspector George Cowley, the senior prosecutor in its professional
standards unit. He said the filing of the charges has been delayed for
procedural reasons.

RCMP Assistant Commissioner John Neily was asked to lead an internal
Toronto police task force in July, 2001, to probe allegations that
officers in a now disbanded squad stole money and drugs and assaulted
suspects during raids in the late 1990s.

The allegations led prosecutors to stay or withdraw charges in more
than 200 drug cases.

The task force concluded there was evidence 12 officers committed
"serious criminal offences," according to court documents unsealed
last year. Disciplinary charges were also recommended against
"several" officers.

In January, 2004, the Ontario Attorney-General decided to charge six
officers with a total of 40 criminal offences.

The confirmation that additional officers will be charged with Police
Act offences comes amid increasing concern about the status of the
ongoing criminal prosecutions.

Sexual assault and weapons charges against Constable Ned Maodus, one
of the officers facing corruption charges, were thrown out by a judge
last month. T he assault and weapons charges were laid in March, 2002,
following the officer's arrest.

A three-year delay between his arrest and the start of his trial
violated his Charter rights, ruled Justice Terrance O'Connor, who
criticized the Crown for failing its disclosure obligations.

Const. Maodus and his five co-defendants on the corruption charges
have been suspended with pay since their arrest. Their trial is not
expected to begin until 2007 and the delay is likely to result in a
similar defence motion to dismiss these charges.

Morale among the task force officers has been damaged by a lengthy
internal probe into the source of a media leak last summer. The leaked
information related to internal e-mails sent by task force members
that criticized a plea bargain that would have allowed a drug squad
officer convicted of cocaine possession to keep his job.

The plea bargain was rescinded and the investigation into the leak was
reportedly ordered when Chief Julian Fantino was publicly criticized
by the drug squad officer's lawyer.

"We have an active investigation on the go," said Staff Superintendent
Rick Gauthier, the head of the professional standards unit. He
declined to comment on the "optics" of investigating task force
officers because of a media leak.

Mr. Fantino was named Ontario's commissioner of emergency management
last month after his term as Toronto police chief ended.