'I shouldn’t have made things personal when it came to my frustration with Sam'
An officer under investigation by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) has admitted to making inappropriate comments about a co-worker who filed a complaint alleging racism and a toxic workplace culture.
During a code of conduct hearing in Surrey, B.C., on Monday, Port Coquitlam RCMP Const. Ian Solven acknowledged that some of the language he used toward Const. Sam Sodhi was “totally inappropriate.”
“I shouldn’t have made things personal when it came to my frustration with Sam,” he said, according to a report from The Canadian Press (CP).
Sodhi filed an internal complaint against Solven and two other officers, accusing them of harassment and discreditable conduct. He testified that during his time at the Coquitlam detachment, he witnessed a toxic workplace culture where derogatory remarks were common. He also cited comments made in private group chats and on police data terminals in May 2021 by Solven, Const. Mersad Mesbah, and Const. Philip Dick, according to the CP report.
The RCMP launched the investigation and reviewed more than 600,000 messages exchanged through police-issued mobile data terminals and private chat groups on WhatsApp and Signal. And investigators found “frequently offensive” language used by officers, including “homophobic and racist slurs,” according to a previous CBC report.
‘Negative interaction’, poor relationship
On Monday, Solven admitted it was “inappropriate” to speak poorly about a co-worker behind their back, adding that he should have addressed his concerns directly, according to the CP report.
Solven also stated that he had “negative interactions” and a strained relationship with Sodhi. He expressed frustration, alleging that Sodhi, upon returning from injury leave, avoided complex investigative files and did not adequately support his fellow officers—including during a violent suspect takedown.
Investigators also identified comments made in group chats about a fellow officer’s weight and about a woman staying in a transitional housing shelter during an investigation, according to the report.
Additionally, Solven admitted to making a remark in the group chats about Tasering unarmed Black people following an incident at a SkyTrain station, where a man was threatening people with a syringe.
At that time, a crowd had gathered and they were yelling at the police officers, he said, according to the report.
“I know the RCMP is not the best at defending its members publicly, and I was concerned that I was just going to be thrown under the bus for this situation where I was just doing my job really,” he said.
Solven also said that he made the comments believing that the group chats were a “private space”, where officers talked about work, beer, sports and news events.
The officer said policing is a stressful job and first responders often use “different” humour as a way to vent their frustrations.
However, Solven said he’s not proud of the remarks, saying “it’s unfortunate that it’s come out in this way,” reported CP.
Meanwhile, the hearing has taken a different turn after defense lawyers accused senior leadership at RCMP of improper interference and a last-minute witness emerging to challenge a key officer’s testimony.
