Special ops corporal charged with theft, trafficking
A member of the military's Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM) has been criminally charged for allegedly stealing clothes, GPS units, fans and other equipment from his unit, then selling some of them online.
Cpl. Pedro Collier, based in Ottawa, is charged with one count each of:
Theft over $5,000.
Possession of property obtained by crime.
Possession of a prohibited device (a magazine for a C7 assault rifle, which is standard issue in Canada's military).
Trafficking stolen goods.
Breach of trust.
In total, the stolen goods were worth about $23,500 and were taken between early December 2015 and early March 2017, according to a news release issued Thursday by the Canadian Forces National Investigation Service (CFNIS).
Some of the items had already been sold online, but the "majority" — about $19,000 worth — were returned to Military Police during the investigation.
The prohibited C7 magazine was not among the items sold, and nor were any other weapons or sensitive military items, according to the CFNIS.
The probe began on March 6, 2017, when someone reported suspicions about items being sold online.
CANSOFCOM runs special operations task forces in Canada and abroad, including hostage rescues, responding to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear crises, exploring sensitive sites, dealing with weapons of mass destruction, maritime special operations and supporting evacuations.
It has a headquarters and five units: Joint Task Force 2, the Canadian Special Operations Regiment, 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron, the Canadian Joint Incident Response Unit – Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear, and the Canadian Special Operations Training Centre.
CANSOFCOM said Collier has been a member of the Canadian Armed Forces since 2005 and a member of CANSOFCOM since 2015. It would not say which unit Collier belongs to.
Collier remains employed, but his duties have been modified.
"In this case, while the member continues to be employed within his unit, his duties have been significantly restricted pending the results of the criminal proceedings. Further administrative measures may be taken once the criminal case has been resolved," read an emailed statement from Capt. Jamie Donovan.
