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The banning of a business deal that saw Ottawa police officers sent to a private training facility run by one of their own is at the heart of a “malicious campaign” that led to criminal charges against an innocent officer, claims a multimillion-dollar lawsuit that’s been filed against the force.

The ending of the deal sparked a personal vendetta against Sgt. Marty Rukavina, who became the victim of an “orchestrated” scheme to publicly humiliate and remove him as the leader of the police’s tactical unit, he alleges in a lawsuit that he, his wife and their three children have now filed.

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The suit, whose allegations have not been tested in court, contends that the campaign against Rukavina led the province’s police watchdog to criminally charge him for what it was led to believe was his role in a training explosion that injured five people in 2014.

Rukavina and his family are suing the police board and several police employees for malicious prosecution, misfeasance in public office, deceit, civil conspiracy and infliction of mental suffering. They’re seeking $3.35 million in damages, plus unspecified costs for future care and loss of income.