Military sexual assault investigation was rushed, biased, watchdog commission says

The Military Police Complaints Commission has found that an internal investigation into an alleged sexual assault by an air force officer who later took his own life was conducted in a rushed, superficial and biased manner.

Its conclusion comes after a Canadian Forces Provost Marshal’s office investigation cleared military police of wrongdoing in the case and found the allegations against them to be unsubstantiated.

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But in two reports issued today, MPCC chairperson Tammy Tremblay says the investigators suffered from confirmation bias and ran an “inadequate investigation marked by undue haste.”

Tremblay also concludes military police leadership at CFB Moose Jaw committed wrongdoing and that “an intoxicated supervisor” was involved in making decisions about the case.

Military police charged Maj. Cristian Hiestand, a flight instructor in a Royal Canadian Air Force flight training squadron, with two counts of sexual assault in 2021.

Hiestand died by suicide two months later and his parents and sister filed separate complaints with the military police over how the investigation was carried out.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 12, 2026.