By Canadian Press

Toronto cop involved in ’16 McArthur arrest wants case heard by judge

Feb 7, 2019 | 9:30 AM

TORONTO — A Toronto police officer facing disciplinary charges in connection with a 2016 arrest of serial killer Bruce McArthur wants his case heard by a judge.

Sgt. Paul Gauthier’s lawyer told a disciplinary tribunal the case must go before an independent adjudicator rather than a police superintendent assigned by Chief Mark Saunders.

Lawrence Gridin began to make submissions on the issue Tuesday, saying Saunders was the one who publicly downplayed rumours of a serial killer operating in the city’s gay village.

However, his arguments were cut short by counsel for the prosecution and the presiding superintendent, who said it was too early in the process to go into the context of the allegations.

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Gauthier was scheduled to make his first appearance on insubordination and neglect of duty charges but was not present at the hearing, which was then adjourned to Feb. 26.

Neither police not Gridin would comment on the exact nature of the charges, which relate to Gauthier’s role in an incident in which McArthur was arrested but not charged.

“I’m confident that the evidence will show in this case that the work done by Det. Gauthier contributed to the identification of Bruce McArthur as a serial killer, did not detract from Project Prism,” the name given to the investigation, Gridin said outside the hearing.

He declined to speak further on the case, saying the attention should be on the victims giving statements at McArthur’s sentencing that day.

McArthur, who pleaded guilty last week to eight counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of men with ties to Toronto’s gay village, had been interviewed by police a few years ago in a separate, unrelated incident.

The force’s professional standards unit launched an internal investigation related to the McArthur case in March 2018, two months after the self-employed landscaper was first charged with murder.

The review was sparked when the detective leading the probe said he came across some “concerning” information while reviewing two previous investigations into five missing men from the gay village.

Paola Loriggio, The Canadian Press