Saskatoon police officer accused of off-duty sexual assault last November
A 16-year member of the Saskatoon Police Service has been suspended with pay after being charged with sexual assault in connection with an incident at a Saskatoon armoury.
Const. Robert Brown, who also serves as a reservist with the North Saskatchewan Regiment, was charged Tuesday by the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service after an investigation into an incident alleged to have taken place on Nov. 11, 2017.
According to a Saskatoon police spokeswoman in a statement to the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, city police were “aware of an allegation into Cst. Brown’s off-duty conduct and the external investigation by the Canadian military. Following the conclusion of that investigation, and once formal charges were laid, he was immediately suspended with pay, as pursuant to the Police Act.”
Brown — who was off-duty at the time of the alleged incident — is not currently on any active duty within SPS, according to police.
“Any allegation of officer misconduct is treated very seriously. In this case, despite the fact that the allegation involved off-duty conduct, the officer was removed from duty in order to maintain public confidence,” said Chief Troy Cooper in a prepared statement.
An assault investigation began after a complaint was made to military police by a third party in December 2017 about an incident at the Sgt. Hugh Cairns VC Armoury in Saskatoon last Remembrance Day, according to Canadian Forces public affairs officer Maj. JeanMarc Mercier.
The alleged victim was a civilian who attended an event at the armoury.
Brown, 44, was charged after a months-long investigation.
In addition to his duties with Saskatoon police, Brown is a master warrant officer and primary reserve member with the North Saskatchewan Regiment.
“Protecting members of the military community, including the civilians who sometimes join us for social activities on defence establishments and deployments around the world, is a key responsibility of the military police,” LtCol. Kevin Cadman, commanding officer for the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service, wrote in a statement.
Because the complaint came to the military police at an establishment owned by the Defence Department, the military police assumed the lead and conducted the investigation, Mercier said. The case now proceeds “in accordance with the civilian justice system to be brought forward in court at a date and location still to be determined,” according to the Department of National Defence.