Toronto police detective charged with drinking on duty and concealment

A Toronto police detective is facing disciplinary charges after he and five of his subordinates were drinking alcohol while on duty and then changing their recorded shift times to cover up the behavior. One of the officers was later arrested for driving under the influence.

Detective Mark Beson is facing a total of seven disciplinary charges. According to documents obtained by CTV News, Beson was the head of the Toronto Police's "Clandestine Lab Team," a team of five detectives in the city's narcotics unit.

The documents say Beson and his team went to Buffalo Wild Wings at the Canlan Ice Sports Complex around noon on Jan. 30, 2023, while still on duty.

It goes on to say that Besson and one of his subordinates, Constable Jason Boag, returned to a Toronto police station building about eight hours later, at 8:06 p.m., in a police cruiser.

About two hours later, at 10:20 p.m., Boag, who was described as “highly intoxicated,” left the scene and got into his own car and drove away. Shortly after midnight, he was involved in an accident and arrested by Ontario Provincial Police for driving under the influence. He pleaded guilty in April 2023.

The disciplinary charges against Besson allege that he had a duty to stop Boag from drinking and driving under the influence. But he not only failed to intervene, but after Boag’s arrest, he changed his shift from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. to make it appear that the drinking occurred outside of work hours.

The documents state: “You filled out the check-in and check-out form for yourself and all members of your team as if their shift was from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. You also signed this form for all members. By doing so, you committed fraud, as you knowingly entered and signed a false statement in an official document.”

The first hearing of the Bessin disciplinary court was held on July 25.

Source