Documents reveal Sean Chu admitted to 'consensual' sexual acts with teen girl while a Calgary police officer
CTV News has obtained internal documents that outline details of a sexual encounter incumbent Ward 4 Coun. Sean Chu had with a minor while he was a police officer with the city.
According to the transcript of a disciplinary hearing, it was alleged that "on or about Aug. 12, 1997, Const. Chu became intimately involved with the young person who was 16 years old at the time,” and she had met him, “while he was on duty, in uniform, and in a position of authority.”
He was 34 years old at the time and admitted to “caressing” the girl on the leg in a public restaurant while in uniform. And then while off-duty and not in uniform, he told the hearing he “participated in consensual sexual foreplay” with the girl in the living room of his home.
“In fact, Const. Chu relayed intimate details as to the sexual extent of this personal contact,” according to the transcript.
And to that, the presiding officer, Insp. D. Middleton-Hope, said, “I find Const. Chu to be forthright in his description of the details and I find his evidence to be believed.”
No criminal charges were laid, but according to two Law Enforcement Review Board (LERB) decisions, Chu was investigated by CPS’ professional standards section for allegedly bringing the girl into his home in those early morning hours 24 years ago, and for alleged misconduct in his actions with the girl. The documents also reveal that the teen alleged Chu sexually assaulted her.
Chu, who served as a member of CPS from 1992 to 2013, was charged with two counts of discreditable conduct and was convicted of one count. The internal documents state that the conviction was in relation to him touching the girl’s leg. He was given a letter of reprimand on his CPS file for five years, which expired in 2008.
At the time the presiding officer, Insp. Middleton-Hope said this action is a “sufficient sentence.”
“This will have significant impact on his ability to seek lateral transfers and restrict his promotional opportunities during that time,” Middleton-Hope said.
In a statement to CTV News on Monday, Chu maintains he did not know the girl was underage saying, “in 1997 when I was 34 years old, I met a woman at a licensed establishment where all persons are required to be 18 years of age or older and show identification. A witness confirmed Mr. Chu’s account of the facts and an internal hearing found that her allegations were without merit.”
However, information obtained by CTV News indicates that the girl was not at an 18-plus licensed establishment, but that she was at a restaurant called the Husky House and Chu was only there at the request of another officer to drive the girl home when he touched her leg. CTV News has learned that instead of dropping her off at her home, he took her to his home where the girl alleged he sexually assaulted her and where she alleged Chu pulled out his Calgary Police Service handgun.
Furthermore, according to information obtained by CTV News, Chu had met the girl during an unrelated police investigation when she was 14 years old, two years before the sexual encounter.
The LERB documents from 1999 also show that the girl had been appealing the matter over the course of nine years. She had filed a complaint against the officers who investigated her allegations, claiming there was misconduct and a “general coverup.”
One of the complaints was that she agreed to a polygraph test but when she called two days before the scheduled date and time, it was cancelled without reason and never rebooked by CPS. The decision in the document from 1999 indicates her complaints against the officers were dismissed.
Calgary police released a statement today, responding to its investigation in 1997. It states:
“We want to reassure Calgarians that when this matter came to light in 1997 it was taken seriously by the Service and managed in accordance with the Police Act. This has been a complex legal matter with multiple complaints and investigations as well as appeals to the Alberta Law Enforcement Review Board. One of those decisions was overturned by the Alberta Court of Appeal. Ultimately, one allegation of misconduct was sustained through our internal disciplinary process."
The internal documents also address the fact that there was concern Chu was using his position as a police officer for his advantage, calling it “disturbing in the evidence presented by Constable Chu was his readiness to use police business cards, police pagers and his police appeal to enhance his off-duty personal life.”
In a statement to CTV, Chu states that during the investigation he underwent a polygraph test, at his request, which confirmed his account. He says, "It is not unusual for police officers to be subject of unsubstantiated complaints, but a complete and thorough process was conducted which found this complaint to be without merit.”
Chu’s statement also says he has contacted the Calgary Police Association to obtain the documents and was advised on Oct. 12 that their records were destroyed in the 2013 Calgary flood.
He says he believes that the timing of the circulation of the documents of the allegations is suspicious given it is coming out right before a municipal election where he will be seeking a third term as the Ward 4 councillor.
“The alleged incidents date up to 24 years ago and were resolved at the time,” he wrote. “It is no coincidence that the files documenting those allegations have been publicly posted just days before an election, and that the Law Enforcement Review Board (LERB) dating back to 2006 were posted on the same day.
“The timing of the release, literally decades after both matters were resolved, is motivated by politics and not by justice."
Some documents related to the case surfaced on social media last week, prompting various media reports.
Asked about the issue after being declared as Calgary's mayor-elect, Joyti Gondek said this is something the next council will have to deal with "immediately."
Gondek did not elaborate on what action council might take.
Calgary Nose Hill MP Michelle Rempel-Garner also issued a statement Monday evening.
"I have supported Mr. Chu in the past but firmly withdraw all such support in light of these reports," it read in part. "Believing women means walking the talk."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
BREAKING McGill University seeks emergency injunction to remove pro-Palestinian encampment from campus
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.