By Rob Shaw
Times Colonist
January 30, 2008
http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=960795d1-06b8-4321-a08c-ed9ab7d0c2b1
Former Ontario police officer Perry Dunlop, who is the subject of an arrest warrant for refusing to testify at a sex abuse inquiry, says he won't run from police and will await arrest at his Vancouver Island home.
"I don't run from fights," he said in an interview yesterday. "I never have ... I guess I wait until they come and get me."
 |
| Perry Dunlop, a former Cornwall, Ont. police officer, was the lead investigator in a sex abuse case involving high-profile members of the community. Photo by Ray Smith |
An Ontario court issued a warrant for Dunlop's arrest earlier this week after he disobeyed a court order to appear before a public inquiry into sexual abuse allegations he first helped investigate in Cornwall, Ont., in the 1990s. Dunlop said he has lost faith in the legal system and won't participate in the inquiry.
The 43-year-old former cop said he expects to be arrested at his Duncan home in early February. "The potential penalty I'm hearing is anywhere from 15 days [in jail] to 15 months," he said.
Vancouver Island RCMP spokesman Cpl. Greg Cox said officers will be legally bound to arrest Dunlop.
Dunlop's testimony is seen as a key part of the public inquiry, because it was his investigation as a decorated Cornwall police officer in 1993 that first brought to light the allegations of child abuse among high-ranking community members.
Facing resistance from his bosses, Dunlop provided details of the case to the Children's Aid Society and the media. For doing so, he says he was ostracized from the force. He had an emotional breakdown. He, his wife, and their three teenage daughters moved to Duncan in 2000.
Years later, an Ontario Provincial Police investigation charged 15 people — among them a priest, lawyer and crown attorney — with sexual crimes against youngsters. But only one person was jailed.
"I think it is a sad day in Canada when a policeman stands up, does his job and gets raked over the coals," said Dunlop.
Contact: rfshaw@tc.canwest.com
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.