A hearing into former RCMP Const. Amit Goyal’s conduct is scheduled for late July. Goyal was suspended with pay in June 2013 over an incident in which two vehicles were reported stolen from his residence and were later found torched. (File photo)
Two years after he was suspended from the Osoyoos RCMP, Const. Amit Goyal is still collecting his pay cheque, but that may end soon.
A disciplinary hearing has now been scheduled for July 28 in Vancouver to hear the case of Goyal, who was suspended from the detachment in June 2013.
Goyal’s suspension stems from an incident in which two vehicles were reported stolen from his home late in 2012.
The first was a 2009 black Audi S5 owned by Goyal, which he reported stolen on Halloween night 2012 from his home on Cottonwood Drive. The value of the Audi was estimated at $50,000 by knowledgeable sources familiar with the car. Goyal filed an insurance claim for the vehicle.
A week later, a 2008 black Ford Ranger truck on loan to Goyal from Collision Craft Auto was also reported stolen from the same location. Six days later the remains of the burned-out truck were found on Anarchist Mountain. The Audi was found in the same area the following spring and had also been burned.
Former Osoyoos resident Steve Condon, who has a criminal record, said Osoyoos RCMP fingered him as a suspect.
Condon, who had a number of run-ins with Goyal in the past, insisted he was innocent and had been framed.
Because the incident involved an Osoyoos RCMP officer, the case was turned over to the Trail RCMP to investigate.
Trail RCMP interviewed Condon extensively in the Lower Mainland between February and May 2013 before he told police he was willing to take a polygraph, a lie-detector test, to prove his innocence.
Condon passed the test and was told he was no longer a suspect. Condon said he told Trail RCMP they should investigate Goyal’s involvement in the incident.
A month later, Goyal was abruptly suspended with pay from the detachment and he’s been paid ever since.
Although Trail RCMP recommended to the Crown that charges of arson and fraud be laid, none were.
For two years, Condon has said he would be suing the RCMP. Last week Condon said that suit has now been launched.
“What he’s done in that community is very wrong,” said Condon, who now lives in the Lower Mainland. “For everybody to cover up for him is totally wrong. I think it’s kind of strange that he didn’t get charged after being recommended for charges.”
RCMP members are subject to the same laws as all Canadians, but they are also subject to a Code of Conduct of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Conduct hearings are held where a member’s dismissal is being sought based on overall circumstances of allegations. These hearings are formal, court-like proceedings held before a board of up to three people.
The boards have legal authority to hear evidence such as sworn testimony and to make determinations as required. If contraventions of the Code of Conduct are established, the board may administer various measures including dismissal.
Conduct hearings are open to the public.
Goyal’s hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, July 28 at 9 a.m. at federal court in Vancouver. Hearings may last for multiple days.
RICHARD McGUIRE
Osoyoos Times
Steve Condon. (File photo Richard McGuire)
