Ex-cop freed after doing jail time for refusing to testify at Ontario inquiry   

CJAD News Talk Radio (AM 800) 

Sat, 04 October 2008 21:23. 

By: THE CANADIAN PRESS 

OTTAWA - A former police officer jailed for refusing to testify before a public inquiry into child sex abuse allegations in eastern Ontario was released from his Ottawa cell early Saturday. 

A website dedicated to the inquiry says Perry Dunlop was greeted by family and friends when he left jail after spending seven months in custody on civil and criminal contempt charges. 

Dunlop was instrumental in sparking the judicial inquiry that examined how allegations of sexual abuse in the Cornwall, Ont., area were handled in the 1990s. 

But he refused to testify at the inquiry and defied court orders to do so, saying he had lost faith in the justice system. 

Dunlop started looking into an alleged pedophile ring that supposedly involved senior civic officials, clergymen and police officers on his own time in 1993. 

A provincial police investigation led to 114 charges against 15 men, but it resulted in only one conviction. 

"Perry's relieved and happy family headed for home," said a notice posted on the website, which is run by a friend and supporter of Dunlop. 

Dunlop was arrested at his home in Duncan, B.C., in February and brought to Ontario to testify at the inquiry, but he refused. 

In September, he was sentenced to 30 days in jail for criminal contempt of court after having served six months for civil contempt. 

He told the court he meant no disrespect by ignoring the judge's order and only had issue with the Cornwall public inquiry. 

Despite Dunlop's vehement claims, the police investigation, dubbed "Project Truth," found no evidence of an organized sex abuse ring. 

Supporters say he is the victim of a system determined to cover up a pedophile ring.