Another VicPD officer’s notebook misplaced and left in criminal’s hands

Another instance of an officer’s notebook has been reported.

The Victoria Police Department confirmed that recently a notebook was left behind at the scene of a search warrant, and was temporarily in possession of a person who is “known to police for suspected criminal activity.”

Officer’s notebooks contain sensitive and private information about witnesses, victims and suspects.

The VicPD said that they do take precautions during search warrants, including an inventory of police equipment, however the item “was not identified as missing” in this case.

Police added that, in this case, the member followed the policy and reported it missing as soon as they realized the notebook had been misplaced.

The notebook was missing for eight days.

The department says that they do not believe anyone whose information was included in the notebook is at risk.

“We have no reason to believe that there is risk to anyone whose information appeared in the notebook but we have notified them of the privacy breach and in line with policy, and out of an abundance of caution, provided personal safety tips for anyone who is concerned,” a VicPD spokesperson told NowMedia.

"We do recognize that incidents like this could be mitigated with technology, and we are actively researching a digital solution to paper notebooks in hopes of reducing the risk and impact of misplacement in the future."

This is the second time that a VicPD officer has been known to misplace their notebook, leaving it in the hands of suspected criminals.

In December 2022, an officer lost their notebook for a period of five days, but didn’t report it missing that month.

In February 2022, the police department released a statement about the incident, saying that the lost book had the names of 60 people in it, as well as 50 addresses within Victoria, Esquimalt, Saanich and the West Shore.

The contents of the notebook were copied and shared among a "criminal element" in the region, and that the information was allegedly used to conduct a criminal offence in Saanich. The VicPD could not comment on what the nature of that crime was.

The Office of the Police Complaint Commissioner (OPCC) and the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner (OIPC) were notified, and an investigation has since concluded.

A spokesperson said that the officer was found guilty of misconduct and was “disciplined with a verbal reprimand.” The VicPD also said that after the incident they updated their policies.

As of April 2023, the new policy states that members, staff or volunteers, Special Municipal Constables and Reserve Constables,
“shall report a lost, found, or damaged notebook to a supervisor as soon as practicable.”