Police in Victoria arrested Const. Sukhwinder "Vinnie" Dosanjh on Tuesday. Dosajnh has been charged with one count of sexual assault. The alleged incident happened in an off-duty capacity, according to authorities. The sex assault charges follow a whole host of troubles for Dosanjh, including being suspended from official duties after he pleaded guilty to several allegations of police misconduct.

By DESIBUZZCanada Staff

With News Files

NEW WESTMINSTER – A troubled Indo-Canadian cop from New Westminster police officer, who has faced numerous misconduct investigations including suspension from duties, has been charged in connection with an alleged sexual assault that took place in Victoria in 2005.

Police in Victoria arrested Const. Sukhwinder Dosanjh, who goes by the name Vinnie, on Tuesday.

Dosanjh has been charged with one count of sexual assault. The alleged incident happened in an off-duty capacity, according to authorities.

“This is always concerning when a police officer is accused of a criminal offence, especially one as serious as this,” Chief Const. Dave Jansen said in a news release Wednesday.

“The New Westminster Police is committed to maintaining public trust and accountability and within the bounds of what due process allows, we will be as transparent on this process as we can.”

The Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner has been “monitoring” the investigation since its early days, the statement said.

Now that Dosanjh has been formally charged, he will also be investigated under the British Columbia’s Police Act.

The constable was suspended from his duties after he was released on bail.

Dosanjh is set to appear in court in Victoria on Aug. 17.

The sex assault charges follow a whole host of troubles for Dosanjh, including being suspended from official duties after he pleaded guilty to several allegations of police misconduct.

Dosanjh was suspended from active duty in July 2008 after he was charged with assault and being unlawfully in a dwelling house, stemming from an incident at the home of a fellow New Westminster officer, reported Royal City Record.

After a lengthy investigation into Dosanjh's conduct as a police officer under the Police Act, Chief Const. Dave Jones reduced Dosanjh's rank to second-class constable for 15 months and ordered that he work under close supervision for that same period of time.

Dosanjh was also ordered to undergo retraining and psychological counselling.

"The case has been resolved," said Sgt. Diana McDaniel, media relations officer. "Vinnie Dosanjh pled guilty. The (Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner) has signed off on the matter. There were no criminal charges, and it was resolved in a pre-hearing conference."

Dosanjh returned to work in February 2012 following the suspension, working in the road safety unit, Jones confirmed.

After several court appearances, Crown counsel dropped the original criminal charges against Dosanjh and the judge issued him a common law peace bond – a rarely used power a judge has to order someone who has not been found guilty of a crime to abide by court-ordered conditions.

 In this case, Dosanjh was ordered to report to a probation officer, have no contact with the woman he was accused of assaulting and possess no weapons, except through his work on the force.

The peace bond expired in November 2011, but a parallel investigation into Dosanjh's conduct as a police officer has been underway since shortly after the original incident.

Once the Police Act investigation started, the investigator found other incidents of misconduct, according to a report from the police complaint commissioner, including Dosanjh possessing a police firearm while off-duty and without permission; doing an unauthorized search of his own vehicle's licence on the police record system, failing to notify the police about a change of address; and losing a knife that had been seized as evidence.

New Westminster police have not said how much Dosanjh collected during his suspension, however, according to the New Westminster Police Officers' Association's 2007-2010 collective bargaining agreement, the pay scale for first-class constables ranges from $72,444 to $79,080, per year, not including benefits. As a second-class constable, that scale is $65,196 to $71,172, reported Royal City Record.

That case eventually headed to a disciplinary proceeding, but it is not known what the outcome was.