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Brassington worked on the investigation into the slaughter of six people, including two bystanders, in a Surrey high-rise on Oct. 19, 2007 by members of the Red Scorpion gang.

In January 2019, he pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and breach of trust in connection with the sexual relationship he had with the potential witness, who can only be identified as Jane Doe 1 due to a publication ban.

He received a conditional sentence of two years less a day to be served in the community after a joint submission from the Crown and defence.

An agreed statement of facts said that Brassington started his affair with the woman in June 2009 after she had agreed to cooperate with police in the gangland homicide investigation. He met her for sex in cities across Canada over a six-month period, frequently drinking with her, the statement said.

And he lied to fellow police officers and manipulated the witness-protection program in order to spend time alone with her.

“This conduct constituted a breach of trust and amounted to a serious and marked departure from the standard of conduct expected of an RCMP officer engaged in witness management duties,” the statement said.

Photo by Mark van Manen / Vancouver Sun

Brassington gave an emotional apology in court for the damage he had done to the RCMP’s reputation.

The former cop applied for legal aid under the Treasury Board Policy on Legal Assistance and Indemnification. He had won an internal arbitration in 2017 saying his mounting legal bills would be paid.