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Ottawa police have launched a widespread internal investigation into an allegation that fake traffic warnings were issued to falsify internal statistics, the Citizen has learned.

At least one traffic escort officer has been suspended and as many as 10 officers are subjects in the internal probe in which police are investigating their own.

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Const. Edward Ellis was suspended with pay Sept. 30 after what multiple sources have called a “stack” of provincial offence notices was found in his police cruiser by another officer. It’s not known how many notices were in the cruiser when they were discovered, but both the officer copies and the versions that should have been given to the motorists who were warned were found.

Police are now conducting an audit of all provincial offence notice numbers generated. The time frame the audit encompasses was not immediately known.

Initially alleged to be the misconduct of one officer, the probe has now grown to investigate whether the alleged practice is rampant and “systemic” among other officers, sources said.