Thomas Carrique (police officer)

Carrique joined the York Regional Police in 1990. He has worked in the intelligence unit, the drugs and vice enforcement unit, and led the traffic bureau, organized crime unit, and special services unit before being named a deputy chief of police in 2011.[1] He left the York Regional Police in 2019 after 29 years, which he emotionally described as "hardest decision of my life".[2][3]

Carrique was initially the provincial government's second choice behind Superintendent Ron Taverner of the Toronto Police Service to lead the OPP, however, Taverner withdrew his name from consideration in March 2019 after claims of political interference due to his close relationship with Premier Doug Ford sparked an investigation by the provincial integrity commissioner.[4]

In May 2020 Carrique went public with his concerns over a "toxic workplace culture" and the officer suicide problem experienced by the OPP. Between 2012 and 2020, 17 OPP officers committed suicide.[5]

Following the death by gunfire of Constable Marc Hovingh in November 2020, in October 2021 Carrique reached out to a local newspaper to explain how the OPP had improved member wellness since he arrived on the scene.[6]

On March 24, 2022, Carrique testified before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security that the OPP's intelligence bureau identified a threat associated with the Freedom Convoy protest in Ottawa on February 7, one week before the federal government invoked the Emergencies Act". He stated that the demonstrations constituted a "provincial and national emergency", and that the "situation and the associated events simultaneously taking place across Canada required unprecedented national collaboration to prevent injury, preserve life and protect critical infrastructure."[7]