B.C. police watchdog investigating apparent suicide of officer charged with sexual assault

British Columbia's police watchdog says it is investigating the apparent suicide of a Vancouver Island police officer, who was found dead shortly after he was charged with sexual assault.

The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. (IIO) says it was called Wednesday to the scene of a deceased man in a rural area near Shawnigan Lake, located about 30 kilometres northwest of Victoria, B.C. The man's death appeared to be self-inflicted, according to the IIO.

The investigations office says the man was one of two Central Saanich police officers arrested and charged with sexual assault Tuesday, following an investigation by the Vancouver Police Department. 

Several police sources say one of those two men — 43-year-old Matthew Ball — died by suicide later the same day.

The IIO has now launched an investigation into what took place leading up to and during the officer's death.

Vancouver Police Union criticizes handling of case

VPD Deputy Chief Fiona Wilson said at a news conference Tuesday that Ball and Const. Ryan Johnston, 40, allegedly formed separate "intimate" and "inappropriate" relationships with the same woman in her mid-20s.

Ball was charged with one count of sexual assault and one count of breach of trust for alleged offences that occurred between Feb. 1, 2019 and Oct. 31, 2023. 

Johnston faces a single count of sexual assault for alleged offences that took place between Feb. 6, 2020, and March 8, 2020. 

Wilson said allegations like the ones faced by the two officers are "deeply corrosive to the public trust police officers depend on to keep their communities safe."

Her comments sparked a response from Vancouver Police Union president Ralph Kaisers, who said in a Dec. 18 letter to union members that Wilson's language was "overly charged" and affects the morale of officers, erodes confidence in policing and undermines the presumption of innocence for the accused officers. 

"The description of the allegations as 'deeply corrosive to the public trust' prior to any trial or conviction not only prejudges the case, but also casts a shadow over the entire law enforcement community, who are working diligently and with integrity to serve their communities," the letter, obtained by The Canadian Press, says. 

It went on to say that the news release issued by police "goes beyond what is necessary to inform the public and veers into language that risks undermining the presumption of innocence — a fundamental principle of our justice system."

Kaisers added that the loss of a fellow officer emphasizes the urgent need for police agencies across B.C. to practise what they preach when it comes to trauma-informed approaches. 

"We can and must do better," his letter reads.  

Former public safety minister calls for inquest

Kash Heed, B.C.'s former public safety minister and the former police chief for West Vancouver, said he has read Kaisers' letter, and agrees with the police union head's take on the situation.

"I think he is expressing the feelings of many people in the police profession," Heed said. 

WATCH | Former solicitor general on concerns over investigation into 2 police officers:

Questions raised over handling of investigation into police accused of sexual assault

2 days ago

Duration 2:52

Two police officers were arrested on charges of sexual assault in B.C. on Dec. 17. By Dec. 18, one of the officers was dead of an apparent suicide, according to police sources. The investigation into the officers started in October 2023, according to police. Former solicitor general and police officer Kash Heed says he has questions about how the investigation was handled.

Heed said it was a "very traumatic situation" for the alleged sexual assault victim and the officers accused in the case, and nobody is "downplaying" the seriousness of the offences involved. 

"Mistakes were made with respect to the health and welfare of police officers that pretty well had their career ended almost immediately as a result of the allegations against them and what took place after," he said. 

"It appears there weren't substantial guardrails put in place with the health and well-being of these officers."

He said he hopes an inquest into Ball's death will examine all agencies involved, including the Central Saanich Police Service where the deceased officer worked, the Vancouver Police Department that investigated, the provincial Ministry of Public Safety and the Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner. 

Vancouver police media relations officer Const. Tania Visintin directed questions about Kaisers' letter to the Vancouver Police Union, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.