Montreal’s suspended police chief renounces job, will stay with force
MONTREAL — Suspended Montreal police chief Philippe Pichet, whose tenure was marred by scandals inside the force, will not return as head of the organization but will remain with the department in a new role, Mayor Valerie Plante said Tuesday.
Plante said Pichet, who was suspended in December and temporarily replaced by the head of the provincial police, renounced his claim to his old job and will instead become chief inspector.
“Clearly, he wasn’t the best-placed person to occupy the position of police chief after what happened with the Montreal police service,” Plante told reporters. “He’s a person who has given a lot to the service and we want to recognize that, but we wanted a simple solution which would the best for everybody”
Named police chief by then-mayor Denis Coderre in 2015, Pichet oversaw a series of controversies including a spying scandal involving prominent journalists that led to a public inquiry on protecting the confidentiality of journalistic sources.