The Vancouver police officer who was filmed posing for photos next to a dead body on Third Beach, along with the officer who took the picture, has now been reassigned.
Vancouver police confirmed Monday that under Section 110 of the Police Act, the officers are now working “non-deployable, administrative positions while the OPCC investigation is ongoing.”
The Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner could change this status based on the findings of their investigation, police confirmed.
Police had been called to the area around 8:30 a.m., Wednesday, after a body had been found on the beach.
It was determined the death was not suspicious and the officers were there holding down the scene.
Resident Zachary Ratcliffe told Global News he pulled out his phone to start filming as one officer posed by the body and the other took photos.
“What if you were the mother of that person or the father?” Ratcliffe asked last week. “I just felt for the person on the beach and their family.”
Simi Heer, director of public affairs for the VPD, said in an email last week that the department does not condone this behaviour.
“The VPD does not condone, and strictly prohibits, officers taking photographs without an authorized purpose,” she said in a statement.
“We expect all of our officers and civilian professionals to act in line with the values of our organization, including integrity, compassion, accountability and respect.”