Senior police detective faces more sex charges
More sex charges have been laid against veteran Vancouver Police Department officer James Fisher.
Fisher, who was a detective constable with the VPD’s counter-exploitation unit, was arrested in December and charged with three counts of sexual exploitation, one count of sexual assault, one count of breach of trust and one count of attempting to obstruct justice.
On Tuesday, the B.C. Prosecution Service announced that two additional criminal sexual assault charges have been approved against the 29-year VPD veteran. Another charge of breach of trust in relation to a witness in a criminal investigation was also approved against Fisher.
The Ministry of Justice said the new charges were approved by a senior Crown counsel who is located in a different area of the province than Fisher, and who has no prior or current connection with this officer.
Fisher, who was suspended from duty in December, is due to appear in provincial court in Surrey on May 30.
In 2015, Fisher was awarded a Chief Constable Unit Citation as part of a team that spent three-anda-half years investigating an operation that forced girls and women into prostitution. That investigation resulted in the 2014 conviction of Reza Moazami on 30 counts of prostitution and sexual offences against 11 victims.
In 2014, Fisher also received an award for his work as lead investigator on that case. Fisher was among 19 British Columbians that year recognized by the provincial government for their contribution to community safety and crime prevention.
Previously, Fisher had served as a gang expert for the Criminal Intelligence Service of Canada and had testified in various trials against Asian organized crime groups. He has also been invited to speak as a crime expert on various panels in Ottawa and overseas.
Off the clock, Fisher served as manager for Vancouver Fusion Female Hockey Program.