The New Westminster Police Department can confirm that one of its members has been arrested and charged with a criminal offence.
Constable Sukhwinder (Vinnie) Dosanjh, was arrested yesterday by members of the Victoria Police Department after an investigation into an incident alleged to have happened in Victoria in 2005. Dosanjh is now facing one count of sexual assault in relation to this allegation; he has been released on bail and next appears in Victoria Provincial Court on August 17th at 2pm.
While this incident is alleged to have occurred in an off-duty capacity, the Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner was advised of the allegation early in the investigation and has been monitoring since that time. Now that criminal charges have been approved, Dosanjh will also be subject to a parallel Police Act investigation. Dosanjh was suspended from duty upon his release from custody and the NWPD Police Board has taken the additional step of notifying Dosanjh they will be considering the conditions of his suspension from duty and the provisions of an unpaid suspension.
As the Disciplinary Authority on the Police Act matters, Chief Constable Jones was unable to make comment. Deputy Chief Constable Dave Jansen did have the following to say:
“This is always concerning when a police officer is accused of a criminal offence, especially one as serious as this. The New Westminster Police is committed to maintaining public trust and accountability and within the bounds of what due process allows, we will be as transparent on this process as we can. In spite of this allegation against one of our members, the women and men of this Department remain committed to providing professional service to the members of this community.”
Due to the ongoing nature of these proceedings, the NWPD will not be able to provide further comment at this time.
-30-