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Ottawa's police chief is investigating the conduct of two officers who attended the scene of a fatal single-vehicle collision in the city's south end earlier this year, but failed to find the driver's body until the following day.
Ottawa's police chief is investigating the conduct of two officers who attended the scene of a fatal single-vehicle collision in the city's south end earlier this year, but failed to find the driver's body until the following day.
Posted: Sep 28, 2026 1:31 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours agoThe audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results. Ottawa police vehicles near the scene of a fatal crash on Bank Street in south Ottawa on Jan. 24, 2026.
Ottawa's police chief is investigating the conduct of two officers who attended the scene of a fatal single-vehicle collision in the city's south end earlier this year, but failed to find the driver's body until the following day. Chief Eric Stubbs's investigation follows an earlier internal probe, as well as an investigation by Ontario's police watchdog. The officers were called to the scene of the crash at Bank Street and Morningside Avenue on Jan. 23.
The body of the driver, identified by CBC as Cole Misner, 24, was found at the scene on Jan. 24. An investigation by the Ottawa Police Service's professional standards unit followed a probe by Ontario's Special Investigations Unit , which found evidence of potential misconduct on the part of both officers.
According to the SIU, Misner's blood-alcohol concentration was more than twice the legal limit when he lost control of his Dodge Caravan around 8:20 p.m. He was ejected from the vehicle and suffered what the SIU described as "catastrophic injuries.
" Officers were dispatched to the scene around 10:13 p.m. but left about 45 minutes later, after searching the empty vehicle and the surrounding area. The next morning, after receiving a call from Misner's wife that he had not returned home from work, an officer returned to the scene and found the man's body partially buried in a snow-filled ditch.
The SIU discontinued its investigation in May and referred the matter to Ottawa's police chief and the province's Law Enforcement Complaints Agency. The professional standards unit of the OPS is responsible for receiving, investigating and resolving complaints against the service's members, and addressing internal matters of police misconduct. It found the officers' response was inadequate because both left the collision scene to respond to another call without conducting an adequate search for the driver or completing a collision report.
While it found no evidence that the officers' conduct contributed to Misner's death, the professional standards unit determined additional investigative steps should have been taken to locate him, including failing to follow up after a wellness check determined Misner had not returned home and could not be reached. While the professional standards unit found no procedural issues, it did find the officers' response was inadequate and asked the chief to make a determination on misconduct.
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