Ex-Mountie in Surrey Six case pleads guilty
Former sergeant avoids jail after admitting to breach of trust and attempted obstruction of justice
A former RCMP officer who was at the centre of a corruption case involving the Surrey Six murder investigation pleaded guilty to several offences Friday but managed to avoid jail time.
Derek Brassington pleaded guilty to breach of trust and attempted obstruction of justice and received a conditional sentence of two years less a day to be served in the community.
Because of a publication ban, the reasons for the sentence imposed by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Arne Silverman cannot be reported yet.
The ban extended as well to submissions made by special prosecutor Chris Considine and defence lawyer Ian Donaldson and evidence heard at the court proceeding.
The conditions in Brassington’s sentence include house arrest, 100 hours of community service and a $10,000 restitution order.
The pleas of Brassington, one of four Mounties charged in the case, came as the trial of the four was finally about to begin after the case had been plagued by years of delays and adjournments.
The breach of trust count involves misconduct by Brassington while managing a witness, who is only identified as Jane Doe, in a criminal investigation. That offence occurred between June 1 and Dec. 31, 2009, in Surrey and elsewhere in B.C. and Canada.
Brassington, who was in the RCMP for 13 years, also pleaded guilty to attempting to obstruct justice by compromising the integrity of a witness or witnesses in relation to a criminal investigation.
“Guilty, my Lord,” Brassington said to both counts in a loud and clear voice.
During the proceedings, the accused at times appeared pensive as he sat with his head in his hands.
Brassington and the other three officers were initially charged in June 2011. In January 2010, it was announced that Brassington had been assigned desk duties in December 2009 when allegations against him surfaced.
A lawyer for Brassington was quoted as saying that years of investigating murder cases had taken a toll on the officer, who was also one of the officers who investigated the cops embroiled in the case of Robert Dziekanski, the Polish man who died at the Vancouver airport in 2007 after being Tazered by Mounties.
In May 2013, then-Sgt. Brassington voluntarily resigned from the force after being charged with theft under $5,000, an offence not related to the Surrey Six case. He later entered a guilty plea to that offence, tearfully apologizing for shoplifting a $70 hoodie, and received a conditional discharge and 12 months probation.
Brassington, who was initially suspended in April 2010, was charged with a total of seven offences in the Surrey Six case. The five remaining charges were stayed Friday by Considine.
Former Staff Sgt. David Attew was charged with six offences, including breach of trust, fraud and obstruction of justice, while former Cpl. Paul Johnson and Cpl. Danny Michaud were charged with breach of trust, obstruction of justice and misleading investigators from the Ontario Provincial Police who were looking into the allegations against Brassington.
Late last year, Johnson had his trial severed from the other three after it was learned that he had been diagnosed with cancer.
The trial of Michaud and Attew is scheduled in B.C. Supreme Court in February.