Police, firefighters and civilians gathered on overpasses along Highway 401 Thursday as a procession carried a fallen Ontario Provincial Police sergeant following his death in the line of duty Monday.
The procession for Sgt. Brandon Malcolm began around 1 p.m., leaving the Centre of Forensic Sciences in Toronto to head eastbound on Highway 401 to Oshawa. He was earlier saluted outside the office of the chief coroner before the motorcade began its journey.
Malcolm, 33, died Monday after his police motorcycle crashed on Highway 401 in Cobourg. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
OPP Commissioner Thomas Carrique said Malcolm “served his community with dedication to duty, honour” and “made the ultimate sacrifice.” He also said Malcolm “was living his best life as a police officer.”
Malcolm is being remembered as an officer who loved his job and the community he served. He was also a member of the Golden Helmets precision motorcycle team. Fellow members of the elite unit accompanied the procession, riding alongside the motorcade as it travelled east.
David Sabatini, president of the OPP Association, called the death “devastating for our OPP family and our policing sector across the province.”
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Former Toronto police officer Sean Shapiro said losses in policing are felt widely.
“Whenever there’s a loss in the policing community, all police officers feel it because it could have been them,” Shapiro told Global News this week.
Along the route, officers, firefighters and members of the public gathered on overpasses to watch the procession pass. In some cases, first responders stood atop fire trucks, while others waited in silence along nearby roads, including in Whitby where Durham Regional Police officers lined up to pay their respects.
In Cobourg, residents expressed grief, with some leaving flowers and offering condolences to Malcolm’s loved ones.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said his thoughts are with the officer’s family and all members of the policing community.
Police said two additional police vehicles were involved in a secondary collision nearby while responding to the crash, resulting in three minor injuries.
OPP Sgt. Joe Brisbois said investigators are reviewing footage and interviewing witnesses as the investigation remains in its early stages.
Malcolm’s body was transported to a funeral home in Oshawa following the procession, where colleagues gathered in mourning.
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