Toronto police officer who heads disciplinary hearings office charged with impaired driving
Supt. Riyaz Hussein, 54, was charged after a crash in Pickering, Ont., on Thursday
A high-ranking officer with the Toronto Police Service has been charged with impaired driving after a crash in Pickering, Ont., on Thursday evening.
Supt. Riyaz Hussein, who leads the force's disciplinary hearings office, is now facing charges of impaired driving, careless driving and having open liquor in a vehicle, Toronto police confirmed in a news release.
In a video posted on Twitter Friday, Ontario Provincial Police Sgt. Kerry Schmidt said there was a crash Thursday on Highway 401 eastbound, near Brock Road, when a car drove into the back of a delivery truck.
The car's driver, a 54-year-old Pickering man, failed a roadside alcohol test, Schmidt said. He was taken to hospital with minor injuries and "after being medically cleared," provided a breath sample, which led to the charges.
Sources have told CBC News that Hussein was driving an unmarked police vehicle, which had been assigned to him.
Toronto police said in the news release that Hussein has been with the force for 33 years and that he has been suspended with pay.
He is scheduled to appear in court in Oshawa, Ont., on Feb. 10.
<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ImpairedDriving?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ImpairedDriving</a> is a leading cause of death and injury. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OPP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OPP</a> officers continue to see high risk driving on provincial highways. If you drink don’t drive, if you drive don’t drink. <a href="https://t.co/j9VRzv0n1w">https://t.co/j9VRzv0n1w</a>
—@OPP_HSD