The officer went into the lounge hours before being charged with driving while intoxicated
Police told CBC Toronto on Sunday that a licensed bar with a full stock that was in a lounge for senior officers at the Toronto Police Service’s headquarters is closing. The decision was made after CBC Toronto said an officer went into the lounge hours before being charged with driving while intoxicated.
In May, senior officers were told by the chief’s office and the Executive Officers Lounge Committee that the bar’s liquor license would not be renewed. This was said in an email from a police spokesperson. The police haven’t linked the closing to the CBC story or to the charges of drunk driving against Supt. Riyaz Hussein.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) says that the liquor license for the Executive Officers Lounge at the 40 College St. headquarters was given for the first time in 1989.
“In the future, if we decide to host an event where alcohol may be served, the service will apply for a special occasions permit from the AGCO,” the spokesperson said.
The AGCO’s website says that a special occasions permit is needed any time liquor is sold somewhere other than a licensed business.
In April, a CBC Toronto investigation found that Supt. Riyaz Hussein went into the lounge about three hours before he crashed his service-issued SUV into another car in Pickering, Ont., and was charged with drunk driving in January 2022. No one knows how long Hussein stayed in the Executive Officers Lounge or if he drank there.
In October 2022, Hussein, who was the head of the police service’s disciplinary tribunal, pleaded guilty to driving with a blood-alcohol level of more than 80 milligrams per 100 millilitres in connection with the crash. He was told he couldn’t drive for a year and had to pay a $1,560 fine.
Police said that the alcohol license was rarely used, mostly for formal events like retirements or when dignitaries were visiting.
The president of the Toronto Police Association, Jon Reid, said in an email that the group agreed with the decision.
Reid said, “It has always been a top priority for us that command and senior officers set a good example in both what they do and how they are held accountable.”