Surrey Mountie accused of abusing position to meet women makes surprise guilty pleas

An officer with the Surrey RCMP has pleaded guilty to three counts of breach of trust related to allegations that he abused his position to meet women.

Cpl. Peter Leckie entered the surprise pleas during a brief court appearance on Monday morning, as a nine-day trial was scheduled to begin. 

Before his pleas, Leckie was facing several other charges, including sexual assault, fraud and unauthorized use of a computer. The B.C. Prosecution Service says the remaining charges will likely be stayed at sentencing.

When the charges were first announced against the officer in June 2022, the Surrey RCMP detachment released a statement saying Leckie "used his position as a police officer to obtain information and contact members of the public for the purpose of engaging in intimate relationships with women both on and off duty."

Police have said there were at least three alleged victims, and the alleged offences stretched back as far as 2014.

Leckie has been an officer with the Surrey RCMP since 2010. When the charges against him were announced last year, the detachment said he was suspended from duty but still receiving pay.

Since then, the B.C. RCMP say Leckie's pay and allowances have been revoked. He also faces an internal code of conduct investigation.

Leckie is scheduled to return to court for sentencing in December.