BURST
Several fraud charges against a veteran Vancouver police officer involved 19 victims and $3 million in losses relating to housing developments, Chief Const. Steve Rai told a news conference on Friday.
Rai, flanked by several other senior officers, read a statement confirming reports that Kalwinder (Kal) Dosanjh, who worked for the department for 26 years, is facing nine charges of fraud, theft and breach of trust.
He also announced on Friday that Dosanjh, whose last position with the force was a motorcycle traffic officer, has been suspended with pay. The force is recommending to the Vancouver police board that his suspension be without pay, said Rai.
The force is also taking steps to file a forfeiture lawsuit against Dosanjh, Rai said Friday.
And it had notified the Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner when the investigation began 2½ years ago, said Rai.
Dosanjh, 50, faces nine counts, including four counts of fraud over $5,000, four of theft over $5,000, and one of breach of trust by a public officer . He has a co-accused, Sarabjit Singh Gill, 51, on six of the fraud and theft counts, according to the B.C. Prosecution Service.
It said the alleged offence dates vary among the nine counts, “but the earliest date alleged is Dec. 8, 2017, and the latest date is July 25, 2025, at or near Vancouver, Surrey, and/or other locations in British Columbia.”
Rai said the charges were laid after a “lengthy and thorough investigation” led by the VPD that began in December 2023 with multiple complaints from alleged victims.
He said the VPD discussed the possibility of an outside agency conducting the investigation of one of its own members with the RCMP, the only other police force large enough to take it on, There was mutual consent because of the RCMP’s lack of resources and transition from policing Surrey that the VPD would handle the case, he said.
“Incidents like these are profoundly troubling and inconsistent with the values of our organization,” he said.
Sources said police made several searches on Thursday, including one at the Surrey offices of the Kids Play Foundation, the charity of which Dosanjh is the public face.
Rai and other officers did not disclose more details on Friday on how the charity is involved.
Dosanjh started Kids Play in 2015. It became a registered charity in 2019, according to federal government records. Dosanjh was listed as a director until 2025, the records indicate. The charity’s site says Dosanjh remains the CEO.
More to come …