DISARM, DEFUND, DISBAND

First Nations leaders call for Thunder Bay Police Service to be disbanded

Story by Alex Brockman • CBC

Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler and other First Nations leaders from northwestern Ontario are set to speak out about their issues with the Thunder Bay Police Service on Monday.© Sarah Law/CBC

First Nations leaders from northwestern Ontario are calling for the Thunder Bay Police Service to be disbanded and say they are making complaints with Ontario's Inspector General of Policing to bring in an outside service to investigate recent deaths of Indigenous people in the city.

This comes after the OPP laid multiple charges against the former police chief and others linked to the force this month. It follows three recent deaths: Mackenzie Moonias, who died in December 2023; Jenna Ostberg, who died in December 2023; and Corey Belesky, who died in 2022.

Leaders from Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) made their call Monday at Queen's Park in Toronto and were joined by Kiiwetinoong MPP Sol Mamakwa to discuss "the Thunder Bay Police Service's long-standing misconduct and systemic failures," according to a news release issued Friday.

"The Thunder Bay Police Service has turned into a cold case factory when it comes to investigations into the deaths of Indigenous Peoples," NAN Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler said Monday. "There is a complete lack of trust, everything has broken down."

NAN represents 49 First Nations in Treaty 9 and Treaty 5 in northern Ontario, a land mass covering two-thirds of the province.

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Numerous reports and expert panels have documented the Thunder Bay Police Service's failures to serve Indigenous people in the city, and a 2018 report found systemic racism within the force.

"Please remember that these were individuals that were loved, and that they meant a lot and their deaths shouldn't have happened," said NAN Deputy Grand Chief Anna Betty Achneepineskum. "It shouldn't be deaths that are cast aside like they don't matter."

Achneepineskum and other First Nations leaders in the region made a similar call for the Thunder Bay Police Service to be disbanded in 2022. Shortly afterwards, the province appointed a board administrator to take over decision-making authority for the oversight board.

"I stood here in Queen's Park and shared these same words, and we still have not seen any results from that," Acheepineskum said.

The police service is under renewed scrutiny after Ontario Provincial Police laid multiple obstruction and breach of trust charges against former police chief Sylvie Hauth and ex-Thunder Bay police lawyer Holly Walbourne earlier this month. In December, OPP also charged Staff Sgt. Michael Dimini with assault, breach of trust and obstruction of justice.

In response, current police Chief Darcy Fleury said last week that he and the new oversight board are working to move the service forward from the challenges it inherited from previous leadership.

Leaders from Nishnawbe Aski Nation were joined in their call at Queen's Park on Monday by:
Kiiwetinoong MPP Sol Mamakwa.
Anishinabek Nation Grand Council Chief Reg Naganobe.
Bearskin Lake Chief Lefty Kamenawatamin.
Family members of Ostberg, Moonias and Belesky.
Julian Falconer, the lawyer for the Osberg, Moonias, Belesky and Debungee families.