Spike in police misconduct cases sees officers charged in Edmonton, Winnipeg

An unusual number of Canadian police officers have been publicly charged with criminal offences—including charges of assault, extortion, and indecency to human remains.

Source: Rawpixel

An unusual number of Canadian police officers have been publicly charged with criminal offences—including charges of assault, extortion, and indecency to human remains—highlighting a spike in alleged misconduct within municipal forces in recent weeks.

Three officers—two in Winnipeg and one in Edmonton—have been publicly named and charged in the past two weeks.

Leo Knight, a retired Vancouver police officer, told True North that these cases represent an “unusual” cluster of charges involving officers in such a short period of time.

There are no known or suspected connections between the Edmonton and Winnipeg cases, and none of the charges have been tested in court.

In Edmonton, Const. Mohamed Elgendy of the Edmonton Police Service was charged Thursday with one count of assault following a traffic stop in June 2024.

EPS said officers observed a Dodge Challenger with an expired license plate on June 21 and conducted a traffic stop. The 52-year-old male driver became aggressive and was placed under arrest.

A subsequent struggle reportedly resulted in minor injuries to the driver, who was treated at the scene by paramedics but did not require hospital transport.

The EPS Professional Standards Branch investigated the incident and referred the matter to Alberta Crown Prosecution Services, which recommended charges against Elgendy, not the driver.

Elgendy, who has just under three years of service, has been reassigned to a non-operational role. EPS said it cannot provide further comment due to ongoing court proceedings.

Meanwhile, in Winnipeg, two members of the Winnipeg Police Service were arrested last week as part of an investigation by the Professional Standards Unit under the direction of the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba.

Const. Elston Bostock, 48, a 22-year veteran, faces 17 criminal charges, including indignity to human remains, distributing an intimate image, break and enter to commit an indictable offence, theft under $5,000, breach of trust, obstruction of justice, and several drug-related offences.

Authorities allege Bostock’s conduct occurred both on and off duty over several years.

Among the most serious allegations is that Bostock allegedly took an intimate photo of a deceased person while responding to a sudden death call on May 21, 2021, and distributed it to another individual.

Police also allege he stole ammunition from police training sessions, interfered with traffic enforcement, accessed confidential databases without authorization, and conducted multiple illicit drug transactions. Bostock remains in custody.

While the number of incidents is described as “unusual” by Knight, he also added that officers are human, fallible and “quite rightly held to a higher standard” under the law.

Nonetheless, the cluster of cases—spanning Alberta and Manitoba—is notable for both its scope and the seniority of the officers involved.