An Osoyoos RCMP constable under suspension with full pay refuses to say where he’s now living.
When the Osoyoos Times phoned Amit Goyal on his cellphone last week, Goyal replied: “I’ve no interest in speaking to you. Thank you. Bye bye.”
Goyal left Osoyoos in mid-June under circumstances the RCMP refuse to discuss. Nor will RCMP say whether Goyal is the subject of an investigation.
“I can tell you that Cst. Goyal is currently suspended with pay,” Sgt. Rob Vermeulen, senior media relations officer with the RCMP in Surrey said in an email last week.
Vermeulen would not say on what grounds Goyal is suspended.
Under the RCMP Act, a member may be suspended if suspected or found to have contravened a federal or provincial law or the RCMP Code of Conduct.
Most suspensions are with full pay, however, in cases of very serious misconduct an officer may be suspended without pay.
No date has yet been set for an adjudication hearing for Goyal, an official with the RCMP Discipline and Adjudications Directorate said.
The question of Goyal’s whereabouts has been the subject of widespread speculation and gossip in the Osoyoos community.
A Facebook page titled “Where is Officer Amit Goyal?” was started anonymously earlier this month, although it had only 12 “likes” as of Tuesday.
Its creator, an Osoyoos businessman, said he did not want to be identified for fear it would impact his business.
The man said Goyal once accused him of street racing even though he was going the speed limit, and that Goyal would tail him whenever he saw him.
“I am mostly just fed up with the lack of police transparency in matters such as this,” the businessman said. “I need to be able to trust the people we pay to keep us safe. It is paramount that police lead by example. If a police officer is suspended, we need to know all the information pertaining to this matter. We need to know that the superior officers in this matter hold our interest above those in their detachment. The lack of open honesty by police when matters such as this do arise leads to a feeling of distrust in the organization as a whole.”
The Osoyoos Times has confirmed that Goyal moved to Vancouver in June after leaving his home in the gated Solé Vita residential community on Cottonwood Drive. It is not known if he is still in Vancouver.
Provincial court cases in Penticton are being dismissed when Goyal is a key witness, lawyers confirm.
The Osoyoos Times has also obtained a copy of a June memo sent by Sgt. Kevin Schur, commanding officer at the Osoyoos RCMP detachment, requesting the cancellation of a number of disputed tickets issued by Goyal.
“Any new ticket disputes that come into your office for this member [Goyal] please do not process them and cancel the ticket as he will not be available to attend court,” Schur wrote to the Violation Ticket Centre in Vancouver.
Meanwhile, a former Osoyoos resident who says he was falsely accused of stealing two vehicles from Goyal’s residence is outraged that Goyal is still receiving a paycheque.
Steve Condon says he was set up to take the blame for the October 31, 2012 theft of a 2009 black Audi S5 belonging to Goyal as well as the theft a week later of a Ford Ranger truck loaned to Goyal by Collision Craft Auto.
The charred remains of the burned out truck were found six days later on Anarchist Mountain.
RCMP who flew down from Trail and considered him the key suspect interviewed Condon extensively on four occasions in Burnaby.
Although Condon acknowledges he has a criminal record and has had run-ins with Goyal, he insisted he had nothing to do with the disappearance of the vehicles from Goyal’s Cottonwood Drive residence.
Finally, Condon told police he was willing to take a polygraph, a lie detector, to clear his name. RCMP in Langley gave him the test, which indicated Condon was telling the truth.
Condon told police they should look into Goyal’s involvement in the incidents. This discussion took place several weeks before Goyal was suspended.
Condon now says he will be filing a lawsuit against the RCMP later this month.
The Osoyoos Times has learned that the investigation of the vehicle thefts was turned over to the RCMP in Trail because of Goyal’s involvement, but police have not confirmed that Goyal was the subject of any investigation.
“… We typically do not confirm or deny investigations unless there is an investigational or public safety need,” wrote Sgt. Vermeulen, the RCMP spokesperson. “Specific details about any investigation only become known when that investigation results in charges being laid by Crown Counsel. This is done not only to protect the integrity of our investigations, but also to protect all citizens that may be subject to a police investigation where no charges are laid. “With respect specifically to RCMP members, when a member is charged criminally, the RCMP demonstrates transparency and pro-actively releases that information.”
While an officer is under suspension, he or she is not permitted to use any RCMP-issued article of uniform or equipment. They also must surrender their RCMP identification and all RCMP-issued firearms and they cannot exercise authority as a peace officer.
Suspension is not considered a disciplinary sanction, but rather is a preventative measure to protect the integrity of the RCMP pending the outcome of the matter, the RCMP say on their website.
“Suspension from duty is only ordered in cases where not to do so would seriously jeopardize the integrity of the RCMP,” the RCMP website says.
Richard McGuire
Special to the Chronicle
