Officers charged in missing person case

TORONTO• Two Toronto police officers are facing misconduct charges over allegations they failed to properly investigate the case of a young woman who went missing last year after a night out in the city’s gay village.

Const. Michael Jones and Const. Alan McCullough are charged under the Police Services Act with not performing a duty and not carrying out an order in the case of Tess Richey, whose body was found by her mother four days after a missing persons report was filed.

According to notices of hearing, the officers were on patrol Nov. 26, 2017 — the day after Richey was reported missing by family — when they were ordered to investigate an address.

The documents allege that while Jones and McCullough were on scene they learned that it was Richey’s last known location but did not search the adjoining property, canvass the neighbourhood or notify a supervising officer of the details. Richey’s mother found her body just 40 metres from the property the officers were called to.