Canary Islands Police Chiefs Probed Over Harassment Claims

The leadership of the Canary Islands General Police Force is currently under investigation. Four of its commanders have been summoned to testify as suspects before Instruction Court number 4 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. This follows a complaint of alleged workplace harassment filed by an officer. As a result, the Directorate General of Security, part of the Canary Islands Government, has launched a confidential internal inquiry to clarify the facts.

The court summons was received by email for the Canary Islands General Police Force on February 10. It was then transferred from the Planning Unit to Internal Affairs. Three days later, on February 13, Internal Affairs formally proposed starting this confidential inquiry. This administrative step comes before any potential disciplinary action and aims to gather all relevant information.

Given the nature of the complaint, filed by an officer against other members of the force, and based on the information available so far, the Directorate General of Security has ordered the implicated commanders to be moved to a different unit. Furthermore, measures have been taken to ensure they will not share work schedules or locations with the complaining officer. This is to protect her well-being and allow the investigation to proceed properly.

In the Spanish legal system, an 'investigado' (investigated party) is someone against whom there is evidence of having committed a crime, marking the official start of a criminal investigation. Given the seriousness of these allegations, and if they occurred during official duties, the Government of the Canary Islands is evaluating the possibility of joining the legal proceedings. This would mean actively participating in the process to defend public interests or those of its employees.