Myron Demkiw, chief of the Toronto Police Service, briefs reporters on Thursday about Project South, a corruption probe that resulted in several officers being charged.Jon Blacker/The Canadian Press
The number of police officers swept up in relation to a massive corruption investigation has grown, with at least five additional officers now suspended across the Greater Toronto Area.
The Toronto Police Service confirmed Friday that in addition to the seven officers and one retired constable who are facing criminal charges related to the Project South probe, two additional officers have now also been suspended.
Peel Regional Police said Friday that three of its officers have been administratively suspended, pending further investigation by York Regional Police, which is leading the probe.
Who are the Toronto Police officers charged in Project South?
“The scope of the York Regional Police (YRP) investigation is wide-reaching and ongoing. … To protect the integrity of their investigation, we will not be providing additional comment,” Peel spokesperson Constable Tyler Bell-Morena said in an e-mail.
Neither Toronto police nor Peel police identified the officers who have been suspended. They have not been criminally charged.
Project South is one of the largest investigations into police corruption that Canada has ever seen, with a total of 27 people charged so far.
The TPS officers charged include Constable Timothy Barnhardt, Sergeant Robert Black, retired constable John Madeley Sr., his son Constable John Madeley Jr., Sergeant Carl Grellette, Constable Saurabjit Bedi, Constable Derek McCormick and Constable Elias Mouawad.
At a press conference Thursday, York Regional Police investigators said the TPS officers are accused of leaking information to organized-crime figures, accepting payoffs and protecting drug-trafficking networks. Investigators said some of the unlawfully accessed data was shared with gang members, who used it for extortion and shootings around Southern Ontario as part of turf wars in the tow-truck industry.
None of the allegations have been proved in court.
The probe began after an alleged plot to kill an Ontario corrections officer was uncovered – and foiled – last June. Investigators said a deputy jail superintendent’s personal information was allegedly shared with hitmen, who were caught on video outside the man’s home in York Region, and arrested after a late-night car crash into a police cruiser parked in his driveway.
Seven Toronto police officers and one retired officer were charged as part of a complex investigation into organized crime and corruption.
Investigators allege that prior to this incident, Constable Barnhardt had unlawfully accessed a police database and shared confidential information with men “known to various criminal networks.”
Constable Barnhardt was denied bail in a court hearing in Toronto on Friday.
The hearing is covered by a publication ban. The bearded Constable Barnhardt, whose salt and pepper hair was pulled into a ponytail, sat looking ahead or at documents during the proceeding. He was dressed in a black hoodie and pants.
Officers at the jail learned of the attempted hit on their colleague shortly after it happened, according to two correctional sources, whom The Globe and Mail is not naming because they were not authorized to speak publicly. The deputy superintendent was said to be well-liked among rank-and-file officers for clamping down on drugs and other contraband entering the facility.
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Asked on Friday whether the government was taking steps to improve the safety of correctional employees, given the alleged attempted hit on a deputy jail superintendent, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he supported those who work in the province’s jails but offered no specifics.
In an unrelated event in Toronto, Mr. Ford said the Project South probe shows that “the system works,” and that he’s sure the investigation would continue.
Spokespeople for Ontario Solicitor-General Michael Kerzner, the cabinet minister responsible for the province’s jails, declined to answer Globe questions and referred a reporter to the Premier’s comments.
At a Project South press conference on Thursday, York Regional Police Chief Jim MacSween said it was “a deeply disappointing and sad day for policing.”
Toronto Police Chief Myron Demkiw called it “a painful and unsettling moment.”
The allegations follow a period of increased scrutiny of Toronto’s police force, after multiple official reviews, criticism over delayed response times and a request for an additional $93.8-million to be added to its $1.43-billion operating budget in 2026.
Toronto police corruption case puts other criminal trials at risk
Chief Demkiw said the charges are proof of the police service’s commitment to restoring the public’s trust. He said the officers have all been suspended and, “where appropriate,” some will be off the job without pay.
In a statement posted to social media Thursday, the Toronto Police Association, the officers’ union, said it was “disturbed by the allegations, if proven to be true.”
“To be very clear, legal support for members charged in criminal cases is not guaranteed by the Toronto Police Association and is determined on a case-by-case basis,” the statement said. “In fact, there is nothing our members or the TPA hate more than a corrupt cop.”
Gosia Puzio, a spokesperson for the Ontario Provincial Police, said Friday that none of the force’s officers had been suspended or charged in related to Project South.
A spokesperson for Hamilton police said the force had no information to suggest that any of its members were involved in the Project South allegations.
The Durham force said no officers have been arrested or suspended in relation to the probe. Halton police did not respond to a request for comment.
With reports from Patrick White and Greg Mercer