An off-duty RCMP officer was arrested on suspicion of impaired driving this weekend -- the second time in five weeks.
According to Vancouver police, an officer saw a man urinate in a parking lot in Spanish Banks on Saturday and then drive away.
The officer stopped the man and the man failed a roadside screening test. Breath samples came in over the legal limit, police said.
The man, identified as an RCMP officer, faces charges of driving while prohibited, impaired driving, and driving with a blood alcohol level in excess of the legal limit.
He is due to appear in court Jan. 8.
RCMP officials identified the man Monday as a 16-year veteran of the force.
He is 55 and posted to the General Duty Protective Policing Section. He was driving his own vehicle.
The same officer was arrested on suspicion of impaired driving Oct. 3 following a crash on the Second Narrows Bridge. He is due to appear in court on Nov. 20 related to that incident.
The officer has been on medical leave since his first arrest. His duty status is under review.
The RCMP is also conducting internal disciplinary hearings and the officer faces possible dismissal.
"Impaired driving is the number one criminal cause of death in Canada. As police officers, we have seen firsthand the carnage and death caused by this irresponsible behaviour," said RCMP spokesman Sgt. Tim Shields in a statement. "This makes it all the more difficult when an incident involves one of our own."
