Drug dealing former York police officer begins 7.5 year jail sentence after appeal dismissed

A veteran York Regional Police officer convicted of stealing a police gun, dealing cocaine and steroids, and disclosing confidential police information began serving a seven-and-a-half-year prison sentence on Wednesday after his appeal was dismissed by an Ontario court.

Constable Richard Senior, 49, was convicted on eight corruption charges in November 2021.

He appealed the sentence, but it was rejected in court on Feb. 21, 2024, and he was immediately transported to a correctional facility to begin serving the sentence.

In a release, police outlined the many ways the veteran officer betrayed his oath.

“A 10-month long investigation initiated by the York Regional Police Major Projects Unit in January 2018, found the officer was involved in a number of criminal enterprises, including the attempted armed robbery of a quantity of cocaine; the theft and illegal possession of a York Regional Police shotgun; the trafficking of steroids to another officer; trafficking cocaine; and the disclosing of confidential police information,” police said.

Immediately following the dismissed appeal, Senior resigned from York Regional Police.

Prior to his resignation, he had worked for York Regional Police for 16 years in uniform patrol in Markham and most recently in the #5 District Community Oriented Response Unit.

York Regional Police Chief, Jim MacSween, expressed his disappointment with the former constable.

“This unacceptable criminal behaviour is not tolerated by our organization and my thanks go to the members who investigated this case and the prosecutors who secured the convictions,” he said.

“This is not a reflection of the hard-working, dedicated, and professional members working each day to keep our community safe. We remain committed to being transparent and accountable to our community.”