Alberta RCMP member from Cold Lake detachment charged for on-duty incident

A RCMP officer has been charged for a on-duty incident which occurred on Cold Lake First Nation.

On Aug. 21, 2021, at 7:06 p.m., an officer of the Cold Lake RCMP who was on route to a complaint collided head on with a civilian motor vehicle on Range Road 430 near Highway 28 on Cold Lake First Nation.

The Cold Lake RCMP, along with Emergency Medical Services, attended the scene. The adult male driver and lone occupant of a van, as well as the RCMP officer and lone occupant of the marked police sport utility vehicle were both taken to hospital with serious injuries.

The Director of Law Enforcement was notified of the collision and had deemed the matter “out of scope” of the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) and advised the matter would remain with the Alberta RCMP, with ASIRT being apprised of the results of the Alberta RCMP statutory investigation.

A statutory investigation into the collision was completed by the Alberta RCMP’s specially trained Criminal Collision Investigative Team, along with the assistance of an Alberta RCMP Collision Reconstructionist, in consultation with the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service. As a result, Constable Victoria Forbes was charged with Dangerous Operation Causing Bodily Harm. She is scheduled to appear in Cold Lake Provincial Court on March 23, 2022.

Cst. Forbes has one year of service with the RCMP. As a result of her injuries, Cst. Forbes has been on administrative duties since her return to work following the collision and will remain on administrative duties as a result of the above noted charge. Once the criminal matter is resolved, her duty status will be reviewed.

As this matter is now before the courts, the Alberta RCMP are unable to provide further information.