Six months after the launch of a provincial police investigation into leaked audio recordings of his voice, the head of the Ottawa police union faces charges of breach of trust and obstruction of justice in a move that has shaken the local police force.

Ottawa Police Association president Matt Skof has been suspended by the police service, but his union members are rallying around him, maintaining that he has their full confidence.

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Skof was arrested Wednesday morning around 10:30 a.m. and charged by the Ontario Provincial Police.

Ottawa police called an emergency meeting of senior officers shortly after the arrest and by Wednesday afternoon announced that Skof, who was a patrol sergeant before he became union head, was suspended from the police force.

“As the matter is now before the courts, our service will have no further comment,” police said in a statement. Chief Charles Bordeleau did not return a request for comment from this newspaper.

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Last summer, a series of audio recordings of phone calls were shared on social media in which a man is heard discussing what he said was an undercover police operation. The man also made unproven allegations against Coun. Eli El-Chantiry, the former head of Ottawa’s police board.

This newspaper has never detailed the nature of those allegations. A two-page letter sent to this newspaper last July by El-Chantiry’s lawyer, Ronald Caza, called the allegations against the councillor “serious and unfounded.”

Skof and El-Chantiry had, at times, a tumultuous working relationship, with Skof even calling for the former chair’s resignation in 2016.

The recordings received widespread attention in July 2018, when, at a police services board meeting, Bordeleau announced he would be asking the OPP to investigate the tapes by initiating what’s called a chief’s complaint under the Police Services Act, the legislation that governs police officers in Ontario. The law gives police chiefs the ability to launch an investigation into the conduct of their officers.

At the time, Bordeleau called the content of the recordings “false information” that was being “released and distributed.”

The “investigation will be focused directly on the origins of the recordings and the individuals involved,” Bordeleau said last July. “To ensure transparency and impartiality, I am requesting that an outside police service conduct this investigation.”

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The OPP’s professional standards bureau, which typically investigates officer misconduct under the PSA and not criminal wrongdoing, took the case.

The recordings, since deleted online, were posted to various social media sites and were edited in such a way that only one voice could be heard. The person who recorded the calls alleged the voice belonged to Skof.

Skof initially denied his voice was on the recordings but later admitted that some of the recordings did include his voice.

At the time, Skof said he had “concerns about the accuracy of the context and content” of the recordings.

The digital files were made by a civilian who claims they were speaking to Skof on the phone. The civilian claimed there were nearly 200 recordings, only a fraction of which were made public.

This newspaper interviewed the civilian, who, at the time, was granted anonymity after they expressed fears of retribution if they were publicly identified.

The tapes were posted online and publicized by Paul Manning, a suspended Hamilton police officer. Manning is currently involved in a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the Hamilton police force in which he alleges police malfeasance and corruption.

The civilian said they gave Manning the audio files because they wanted to gauge his “professional opinion” on what they contained and that it was Manning who released them publicly.

That release was met by a groundswell of support for Skof by Ottawa police officers who questioned the motives and goals of the release. Officers wondered, too, why some of the sensitive content on the recordings was being discussed with a civilian.

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Skof became president of the police union in 2011 when, as a patrol sergeant in the busy downtown core, he was elected under the slogan “I won’t back down.”

He vowed then that he’d be a more vocal defender of his fellow officers in the media. Since his election, he has become the face of rank-and-file police officers, defending their on-duty actions, advocating for more resources on the road and pushing for improved mental health supports and systems for police. In his outspokenness, he has also courted controversy, like in his opposition to supervised injection sites and asking Capital Pride not to exclude officers from its parade.

And Skof has also often criticized police brass, claiming a double standard exists in the treatment of senior and rank-and-file officers.

The nature of his job has meant not only a tumultuous relationship with former board chair El-Chantiry but also the police chief.

As an association president, Skof’s job means he is not subject to the Police Services Act and can, for instance, criticize the chief without fear of disciplinary action or reprisal. He also has the ability to speak critically on the record to the press about matters of police and public interest. His role, according to several officers, also means that he’s not technically working as a police officer who can breach the trust of his duties since his job is working for a labour organization.

While Skof has been suspended by the force, he can remain president of the union. He will remain on the association’s payroll during that suspension. As an officer who is seconded to the labour organization, Skof has not been paid by the Ottawa police since he was elected.

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The charges against Skof, when announced by the OPP and then the OPS, identified him as an Ottawa police officer and sergeant. Breach of trust can only be laid against public officials, like police officers, who owe a duty to the public, but who are also typically paid by the public dime.

In a letter to all members of the union, obtained by this newspaper, the OPA said its board of directors “maintains full confidence in President Skof.”

“We want to assure you that we will continue to support the membership and the daily business of the OPA will continue as usual,” the letter said.

When reached for comment, Skof’s lawyer, Michael Edelson, said it would be premature to comment on a case in which he has not yet seen any evidence.

Police board chair Coun. Diane Deans, who replaced El-Chantiry, called the allegations serious and the development concerning.

Deans also said that she is hopeful that the board and the association “will build a strong relationship,” and that she is committed to that goal.

Skof is scheduled to appear in court March 8.

With files from Drake Fenton, Aedan Helmer and Megan Gillis

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