Image Credit: InfoTel Multimedia
(JESSICA WALLACE / iNFOnews.ca)
April 11, 2013 - 11:51 AM
Two RCMP officers and a jail guard will stand trial after allegedly watching and failing to intervene on two women performing sexual acts in city cells while in police custody.
Cpl. Kenneth Brown, Const. Stephen Zaharia and jail guard David Tompkins will stand trial facing one count each of breach of trust after a preliminary inquiry that began on April 3. A preliminary hearing determines enough evidence exists to warrant a trial.
The Crown has stayed charges against Const. Evan Elgee, the officer with the least seniority, who initially also faced breach of trust charges.
A publication ban prohibits reporting of evidence heard during the preliminary inquiry until the trial is over, however a public investigation by The Commission for Complaints against the RCMP has published it's findings from the event.
A report by the commission says two inebriated women were taken separately to the Kamloops RCMP detachment on Battle Street and were placed together in a holding cell.
The report describes multiple RCMP members and jail staff - including Brown, Zaharia and Tompkins - watched the women on video as they engaged in the sexual encounter.
To complicate the matters, the report claims one of the women is said to be HIV positive.
The three to stand trial are expected to appear next in B.C. Supreme Court for a fixed date on May 6.
To contact a reporter for this story, email: jwallace@infotelnews.ca or call (250) 319-7494.
News from © iNFOnews, 2013