The Serious Incident Response Team (SiRT) has entered into an agreement with an oversight agency from Alberta to investigate police conduct during the 1999 murder conviction of a Nova Scotia man.
Glen Assoun, from Halifax, was wrongfully convicted of murdering his ex-girlfriend. He was acquitted in 2019, after spending 16 years in jail. He died in June 2023.
The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) will now look into whether RCMP destroyed evidence in the case.
In a news release, Thursday, Erin Nauss, Director of SiRT says getting this work started has been a focus of hers since she took on the role as Director.
“I am grateful to ASIRT for taking on this important investigation. Their team brings experience and expertise, and I have complete faith in their ability to conduct a professional, thorough and independent investigation, says Nauss.
SiRT says having an external agency investigate will remove the risk of any real or perceived conflict of interest to make sure things are fair and impartial.
On September 8, 2020, former Minister of Justice and Attorney General for Nova Scotia, Mark Furey, asked SiRT to investigate the matter of a possible miscarriage of justice.
Police in B.C. were originally supposed to look into the case, but they determined they didn’t have the capacity to take it on.
-with files from Jacob Moore
