A longtime Barrie police officer, and former National Hockey League player, appeared in a local courtroom Tuesday for a preliminary inquiry on charges of extortion and criminal harassment.
Sgt. Bruce Gardiner, an 18-year member of the Barrie Police Service whose NHL career spanned parts of five seasons, was in court for the first day of the proceedings, which continue on Wednesday and Thursday.
The complainant in the case also appeared before the court.
There is a publication ban in place on what was said during the hearing.
None of the allegations against Gardiner have been tested in court.
When the charges against Gardiner were announced in February 2022, Barrie police said the alleged events occurred while he was off duty between 2016 and 2018, and stemmed from conduct toward another member of the city's police department.
Gardiner, 52, was formally charged on Feb. 4, 2022.
In July 2021, Kimberley Greenwood, who was Barrie’s police chief at the time, said she learned of the allegations and ordered an investigation into Gardiner’s conduct. He was immediately suspended from duty with pay.
An investigation by the Barrie Police Service’s Professional Standards Unit resulted in the two criminal charges being laid.
City police officials have previously stated they cannot comment on the case while it's before the courts.
Gardiner played in 312 NHL games, scoring 34 goals and adding 54 assists during stops in Ottawa, Tampa Bay, Columbus and New Jersey between 1996-97 and 2001-02. He was selected in the sixth round (131st overall) of the 1991 NHL Entry Draft by the St. Louis Blues.
He also played with the Junior 'B' Barrie Colts in the late 1980s, when they were in the Central Ontario Hockey League, before playing college hockey with Colgate University in Hamilton, N.Y.
Gardiner’s hockey career also included stops in the Russian Super League and Finland. His professional hockey career ended in the 2004-05 season with the Adirondack Frostbite of the United Hockey League.
Gardiner came up through the Barrie Minor Hockey Association and was inducted in the Barrie Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.
