Toronto officer in warlord case faced discipline
21-year veteran pleaded guilty to neglect of duty, insubordination in 2016
The Toronto police officer charged in connection with the killing of a former Liberian warlord who was living in London, Ont., pleaded guilty to internal police discipline charges years ago.
Const. Trevor Gregory was arrested by London police on Tuesday and charged with breach of trust in relation to the June 21 death of Bill Horrace, formerly of Toronto.
Gregory is the father of Keiron
Gregory, 22, who is wanted for second-degree murder in the shooting.
Police have released no details of the charges against Trevor Gregory, 46, a 21-year-veteran, who worked out of midtown 53 Division. He has been suspended with pay as is required by the Police Services Act.
Documents show he pleaded guilty in 2016 to neglect of duty and insubordination after an incident in which a woman he arrested overdosed on pills.
A Toronto police disciplinary hearing decision says Gregory did not tell other officers the woman had ingested the pills. She was later found unresponsive in her cell before paramedics took her to hospital where she received treatment and lived.
Trevor Gregory could not immediately be reached for comment.
Horrace was shot to death after four men — three of whom wore medical masks — arrived in two cars and burst into a home at 232 Pochard Lane on a quiet residential street in the east end of London, Ont., around 5 a.m. on June 21. London police Det. Supt. Chris Newton said it was a targeted attack.
Newton said in an interview that Trevor Gregory’s arrest this week is “directly related to the investigation into the murder of Bill Horrace” and that there are well-defined rules regarding access to police information.
“When you don’t abide by that standard of care of information, that’s when there’s the charge of breach of trust by a public officer,” Newton said.
Horrace never stood trial for war crimes before moving to Toronto in the summer of 2002.
According to Liberian journalist Rodney Sieh, Horrace had repeatedly denied war crimes allegations to Canadian immigration officials and maintained he was a churchgoing, God-fearing man who ran a hair salon and an import-export business in Toronto while helping the city’s homeless.
Gregory has been released with a court date of Sept. 29.