Dennis Hill, Ottawa OPP officer, charged after gaming house bust
Officer was previously charged with theft, resisting arrest in 2014
A 14-year member of the Ontario Provincial Police force has been charged after OPP busted an alleged illegal gaming house in Ottawa's Alta Vista neighbourhood on Friday night, and it's not the first time the officer has faced charges.
Ottawa OPP officer charged with resisting arrest, theft: http://www.oppblock.org/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=455&sid=9f4e4f7d4bea06886a32391dc7382cb8.
OPP executed a search warrant at around 10 p.m. Friday at a home on Snowdon Street, near Bank Street and Kilborn Avenue.
The search was the culmination of Project Rideau River, a weeks-long investigation into an organization keeping a common gaming house on the street, said OPP Sgt. Kristine Rae on Saturday.
A gaming house is somewhere people can place bets but that doesn't have permits for that kind of activity, Rae said.
Stephanie Haley, who lives across the street from the home, told CBC News Saturday that neighbours had noticed suspicious activity at the house.
'A lot of cars in the evenings'
"There was a lot of cars in the evenings," Haley said. "It's a bit unusual for this neighbourhood so we kind of wondered what was going on but didn't really know, didn't question it too much.
"We did think there was something suspicious going on there."
Kevin Gibson, who also lives on Snowdon St., said an unusual number of cars had been seen parking near the house for months.
"We weren't too sure what was going on," he said. "The people were very quiet ... [There were] no disturbances, so to speak. Sometimes, there would be so many cars on the street it would be hard to get by. But that's really all there was to it."
Drugs, cash seized from home
Marijuana, cocaine, oxycodone, hash, morphine and cash were seized from the home.
Eleven people were arrested and charged, including Ottawa OPP officer Dennis Hill, who was on leave from his duties at the time, said OPP spokesperson Sgt. Kristine Rae.
Hill was charged with one count of being found in a common gaming house and one count of possession of cocaine.
The 10 others are facing charges including keeping a common gaming house, possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking, possession of controlled substances and being found in a common gaming house.
All 11 people charged were later released from custody on promises to appear in court in July.
Officer on leave also charged with theft in 2014
In July 2014, OPP charged Hill with theft under $5,000 and resisting arrest after a June 2014 incident at a Walmart in Carleton Place, Ont., southwest of Ottawa.
Hill was also on leave from the OPP when the 2014 charges were laid, Rae said.
The 2014 charges were laid after an investigation by the OPP's Professional Standards Bureau.
CBC News was not immediately able to verify the status of the 2014 charges on Saturday.
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