Hamilton cop charged with sexual assault: SIU

Ontario's police watchdog says a Hamilton officer has been charged with sexual assault.

Special Investigations Unit (SIU) director Joseph Martino has reasonable grounds to believe" a Hamilton police officer allegedly sexually assaulted a woman, the agency said in a release on Thursday. Following an SIU investigation, Const. Jeffery Turnbull has been charged with one count of sexual assault, the release said.

The SIU, which probes incidents involving police in Ontario where someone dies, is seriously hurt or there is an allegation of sexual assault, was notified of the incident on April 14, 2022. The alleged assault occurred sometime between February and April 2022, the release states.

No further information about the investigation will be provided as the matter is before the courts," the release reads.

Turnbull is expected to appear in court in Hamilton on July 6.

Kate McCullough is an education reporter at The Spectator. kmccullough@thespec.com