Witness says police threatened to kill him over abuse allegations; Police internal letter says accusations 'unfounded'

Cornwall Standard Freeholder 

Tuesday, August 21, 2007 - 08:00 

Terri Saunders


Local News - A witness at the Cornwall Public Inquiry said Monday two city police officers threatened to kill him if he kept making allegations of sexual abuse against two alleged perpetrators.

Kenneth-Keith Ouellette said he clearly recalls being taken to the headquarters of the Cornwall Community Police Service in the late 1970s or early 1980s and warned to stop talking about the abuse he says he suffered at the hands of a probation officer and an employment counselor.

"Two officers pushed a desk up against me and pinned me against the wall in an interview room," said Ouellette.

"They said if I ever opened my mouth again, I would have two bullets put in my brain."

Ouellette said the threats were made after he made claims he'd been abused by Ken Seguin, a city probation officer, and Richard Hickerson, an employment counselor believed to have been a former priest from Saskatchewan.

Seguin committed suicide in 1993 and Hickerson killed himself in 1998.

Ouellette said he also recalled a time prior to the incident at police headquarters when he was placed in a patrol car and driven to the area of the R. H. Saunders power dam.

He said the officer driving the car in which he was traveling met another officer at the dam and he overheard part of their conversation.

"One of the officers said, 'Should we just do him here?'" said Ouellette.

Police records provided to the inquiry show correspondence in early 2000 between an officer and the man who was police chief at the time.

Sgt. Brian Snyder wrote a letter to Chief Anthony Repa outlining Ouellette's allegations against members of the force about incidents which occurred years earlier.

The complaints had been investigated, Snyder indicated, including one against former Chief Claude Shaver.

Snyder indicates in the letter he had compiled evidence to show Shaver was not chief at the time Ouellette said he was threatened by the chief of police and also suggested there was no evidence or corroboration of Ouellette's claims he was picked up by officers at his residence and transported to the station where the alleged assault occurred.

"Based on the . . . evidence, my investigation has determined that Mr. Keith Ouellette's complaint against unknown members of the Cornwall Police Service is unfounded," Snyder wrote.

Ouellette, who is now 53 years old, says he was abused by his brother, Seguin, Hickerson and another man named Chris Wilson, for many years when he was young.

Ouellette said he got into trouble on occasion during his youth, sometimes for selling drugs or stealing money from church collection boxes, but there was an explanation for his behaviour.

"I came from a poor family and I was taking drugs to deal with having been abused," he said.

"I was misguided, I was troubled and I was young."

His journey through the court system would serve to introduce him to Seguin, who served as his probation officer for a period of time.

Ouellette said Seguin would threaten to revoke his probation if he didn't consent to the abuse.

The inquiry continues today with more testimony from Ouellette.