Six years after losing his post as SPVM boss, Philippe Pichet says he still doesn’t know why he was suspended and says he was humiliated by Mayor Plante’s comments.
• Also read: Former police chief Philippe Pichet is suing the SPVM for bullying
“Every morning when I take my pill, I think about these things. It seems like there is no end. May I know what I did?” said former Montreal Police Service (SPVM) chief Philippe Pichet during his testimony before the Administrative Labor Court.
Philippe Pichet, who headed the police service from 2015 to 2017, is being questioned there in relation to two bullying complaints he had filed against the city of Montreal.
Mr Pichet is still employed by the police but has been on sick leave for several months.
He claims he was “humiliated” in particular by the reactions of Mayor Valérie Plante during a press briefing on public safety during the last municipal election campaign.
“It gets me, it discourages me, it knocks me down. Three years after the transaction, she was still mentioning that I wasn’t well and that she needed to change me,” sighed the former head of the SPVM.
suspension
Mr Pichet had been suspended in exchange for pay by Valérie Plante and then Minister for Public Security Martin Coiteux following a devastating administrative inquiry into the SPVM in December 2017.
“Me Bouchard’s report is a bunch of lies. A vomit for those who weren’t happy,” Mr Pichet said full of emotion.
He said he only met Mr Coiteux once before submitting the report, who told him he had “trust” in him.
“Martin Coiteux will never speak to me again, except over television to suspend me,” Mr Pichet claimed.
From one position to another
Finally, in June 2018, the former head of the SPVM officially resigned his position after reaching an agreement with the city to reinstate him as chief inspector. However, he never held this position.
“To quote Félix Leclerc: if you want to kill a man, leave him at home and do nothing. That’s exactly what it is,” introduced Mr. Pichet.
Over the years it has been loaned notably to the City of Montreal Security Department, to the International Center for Crime Prevention, and then to the City of Fermont.
“I feel really weird. From managing 6,000 employees to doing nothing at home to managing 15 security guards to managing 12 people, they don’t want me. I feel rejected,” Mr. Pichet said.
At the same time, in 2021, Philippe Pichet filed an application ordering his reinstatement to the position of Chief Inspector, stating that he had been the subject of a hidden dismissal.
He is also suing his former employer for $2.9 million in damages.
The hearing before the administrative judge François Caron at the Administrative Labor Court will continue this autumn.
Can you share information about this story?
Write to us or call us directly at 1 800-63SCOOP.