PIKANGIKUM FIRST NATION – The chief and council of Pikangikum First Nation say they’ve expelled Ontario Provincial Police from their community amid allegations of misconduct by officers posted there.
The departure of the police officers on Saturday night also caused Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) to fly nurses out of the First Nation, located about 200 kilometres north of Kenora, according to a statement from the First Nation issued Sunday.
The community of roughly 3,000 will be left without 24/7 health care, as ISC plans to continue flying nurses out each night “in response to the developing situation."
The concerns over behaviour by OPP constables dates back “many years,” said band leadership.
“Pikangikum needs to know about potential threats to our community, especially when that threat comes from the people we entrust to protect our members,” said Chief Dean Owen. “This is not a course of action we take lightly and the consequences are far reaching. Trust between our organizations has been broken and has caused an unsafe situation within Pikangikum which can easily escalate.”
The First Nation did not detail the substance of the allegations in the release.
MPP Sol Mamakwa, whose Kiiwetinoong riding includes Pikangikum, said Sunday it was unacceptable to leave the community without adequate medical support during a pandemic.
The sudden departure of the nurses could be against their professional code of practice, he suggested.
He also voiced his support for an independent review of the misconduct allegations.
It’s not the first time OPP officers have been asked to leave the community, he pointed out, saying the force needed to work to rebuild trust.
Community members escorted OPP officers off the reserve in 2010, and in 2015 entered the detachment, causing damage to the building and police vehicles.
A representative for Kenora MP Eric Melillo, who represents the First Nation federally, said he was "very concerned" by developments in the community and had reached out to Owen and ISC.
Owen called for immediate attention to the issue from government, saying OPP officers wouldn’t be welcomed back until that occurred.
“The OPP will remain expelled from the Community until we receive an acceptable response from government as the safety of our community members, especially our youth, hangs in the balance.”
Neither the OPP nor Indigenous Services Canada immediately responded to requests for comment Sunday.
