There was a heavy police presence at Kingston General Hospital on Sunday as the OPP’s tactical team was called in after a high-risk offender from Millhaven Penitentiary was brought in for treatment.
It’s being described as “quite a scene” by a witness who was at the Kingston General Hospital on Sunday afternoon.
The witness who wants to remain anonymous says he was waiting at the emergency department with his daughter. Around 2 p.m., the staff at KGH asked him to go inside the room where his daughter was being treated and shut the door.
The staff told him that officers are bringing a dangerous person inside. A few minutes later, he noticed six to seven officers from the OPP Tactical team enter the hospital, along with several Kingston police officers while about six OPP cruisers waited outside the hospital’s emergency entrance.
He said he overheard people talking about an offender that was being brought in.
Global News spoke with Justine Lewis, media relations for Correctional Service of Canada, who said, “An offender, who was in need of care at an outside hospital, was transported with armed correctional officers to KGH… this occurs when we need to transport high-profile inmates as per policy.
“Under the Privacy Act, I can’t offer any more information about the offender, including health-related information. CSC works closely with local police agencies to ensure public safety.”
Global News asked Lewis if the high-risk offender was Paul Bernardo. Lewis said, “I simply can’t disclose that information due to the Privacy Act.”
The OPP said the patient was brought in after he was assaulted at the Millhaven Institute, a maximum-security prison located in the Bath area.
Kingston police said the high-profile patient was taken back to Millhaven Institute around 8 p.m. on Sunday without any incident.