Police said Tuesday that a Calgary canine officer was charged with assault stemming from an on-duty incident six months ago.
On Feb. 20 at 11 p.m., officers spotted a vehicle that — according to its licence plate — was reported stolen. Police followed it until the driver parked in the 1200 block of 34 Avenue N.E.
As the woman who drove the vehicle walked towards a nearby building, police said a canine officer approached her and “ordered her to lie on the ground.”
Police said she set her belongings down but “did not immediately lie down,” so the officer forced her to the ground.
“It is then alleged that the officer kicked her in the back and that the officer’s canine then bit the woman,” police said in a news release Tuesday.
It turns out the woman was the victim of a licence plate swap, “where, unbeknownst to the victim, plates from a stolen vehicle are swapped with a similar parked car to avoid detection,” police said.
Police said was lawful to arrest the woman to “investigate what officers reasonably believed was a stolen vehicle,” but an internal investigation and a review by the Crown prosecutor determined that criminal charges are appropriate because of the force used during the arrest.
Officers said the woman “fully co-operated” with the investigation and has been offered victim support resources.
Const. Keegan Metz, a 12-year Calgary Police Service member, was charged with assault with a weapon and assault causing bodily harm. He was removed from the canine unit immediately after the incident and is suspended with pay, police said.
“His pay and status will be regularly reviewed as the case progresses,” CPS said.
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