Kelowna RCMP officer charged with obstructing justice

A Kelowna RCMP officer has been charged with two counts of obstructing justice following his involvement investigating an allegation of intimate partner violence in Lake Country.

In a rare move, the B.C. Prosecution Service announced today, March 10, that Kelowna RCMP Const. Sean Eckland had been charged.

"The charges were approved by an experienced Crown counsel with no prior or current connection with the officer," the media release reads.

The release gives no details regarding what took place, however, in November 2020, a Lake Country resident, Lonnie Noel Smith, was sentenced to two-and-half years jail for beating his girlfriend while high on cocaine.

Const. Eckland was an investigator in the case and caused some delays in the court proceedings.

Const. Eckland is alleged to have sent graphic and sexually explicit text messages from his personal cell phone to the victim in Smith's case. He then became the subject of an internal code of conduct investigation.

The B.C. Prosecution Service gives no details as to what Const. Eckland did be charged with two counts of obstructing justice.

Const. Eckland was charged today, Mar. 10, and is scheduled to appear in court April 4.

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