Case adjourned for Woodstock RCMP officer charged with theft over missing evidence

The case of a Woodstock RCMP officer charged in connection with missing evidence, including cash, has been delayed. 

Const. Christopher Sorensen, a member of the RCMP's provincial crime reduction unit, was scheduled to appear in a Woodstock courtroom on Wednesday for election and plea, but the case was adjourned until Jan. 29.

According to the Woodstock court docket, Sorensen, 37, is charged with theft and breach of trust by a public officer. 

The Criminal Code divides theft into two categories — over $5,000 and under $5,000. Sorensen was charged with one count of each. Theft over $5,000 can be laid as an indictable offence, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. 

Sorensen was charged in October by the Serious Incident Response Team, or SIRT, which investigates all matters that involve death, serious injury, sexual assault and intimate partner violence or other matters of public interest that may have arisen from the actions of a police officer.

According to an October news release from SIRT, the team was asked on April 15 to investigate "missing and unaccounted for exhibits, including cash, that had been previously seized in the course of an investigation."

Officer suspended with pay

Sorensen remains suspended with pay, said Cpl. Hans Ouellette, a spokesperson for the New Brunswick RCMP. 

Ouellette previously said a separate code-of-conduct investigation was being conducted by the RCMP's professional responsibility unit.

"RCMP members are expected to hold themselves to a high moral and professional standard," Ouellette said in October, when Sorensen was first charged. "We understand and respect the impact it can have on public trust when there is any allegation that a member has not met the standard that our communities deserve."