Police officers ordered to turn blind eye to man’s crimes, report says
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Blunt orders from senior police telling officers to turn a blind eye to a Newfoundland’s man’s crimes shows fresh leadership and civilian oversight are needed, the province’s justice minister said Thursday.
“It’s time to change course and rebuild trust,” Andrew Parsons told reporters after he received an independent report that examined whether unnamed senior officers obstructed justice.
Two supervisors with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary told front-line officers to make no arrests despite their observation of a man committing “a serious property crime.”
The man was under surveillance by police and seen as “an individual who might be able to assist” with a major case involving organized crime, the report said.