No charges recommended for off-duty officer who handcuffed Manitoba teen in doorbell prank incident

An RCMP epaulette is seen in Edmonton on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson

Manitoba’s police watchdog is not recommending charges against an off-duty RCMP officer who handcuffed a 13-year-old girl following a doorbell prank incident last fall.

In a report released Monday, the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba (IIU) said the officer would not be criminally charged and the investigation is now over.

“Caselaw makes it clear that officers are not to be held to a perfect standard,” the report from Bruce Sychuk, the acting civilian director of the IIU, reads.

“Put another way, despite the fact that [the officer’s] actions displayed questionable judgement and seem to be extreme, considering the entirety of the evidence, I am not in a position to say that his actions are criminal.”

The incident took place on Oct. 19, 2025, with Brandon police responding to a report from a mother saying a man showed up at her home with her daughter in handcuffs. It was later determined the man was an off-duty RCMP officer, who said he arrested the teenager.

The report said the teen girl was at a sleepover with a friend that night and was with a group of friends who were playing ding-dong-ditch, a prank that involves ringing the doorbells of houses then running away. The girl said in her interview she didn’t want to participate in the actual game but wanted to walk with the group.

The girl said one of the members of the group rang the doorbell of a home where someone was heard yelling. The group returned to the same house, and the person inside the house, later determined to be the off-duty officer, yelled at them again.

Brother had rifle, teen said

The girl then stated three cars pulled up to the group, with the officer exiting one car and running toward the group while wearing a police vest and khaki shorts. The rest of the group, except for the teen, ran away.

The teen said another person from the same vehicle, later determined to be the officer’s brother, got out and was holding a rifle. Other witnesses interviewed said they did not see the officer’s brother with a rifle.

“(The teen) confirmed that this male did not point the rifle directly at her, but she was definitely aware that he had it,” the report reads. “The male with the rifle went back into the vehicle while (the officer) grabbed (the teen’s) right elbow, placed her in handcuffs and took her phone.”

The teen then walked four blocks in handcuffs to her home, according to the report, and said that the officer did not tell her she was under arrest.

When they arrived at home, the teen’s mom pulled her back inside the home and called police after the officer could not provide his badge, as he had forgotten it at home.

Officer said he ‘feared for his life’

The officer and his brother were later arrested by Brandon Police for forcible confinement but were released without charges.

The officer declined an interview with IIU but provided a statement through his lawyer. The officer said he “feared for his life” when he heard the knocks on the door. The officer grabbed his RCMP vest and other intervention tools and went with his brothers to try to find the teens.

“He stated that there had been many break and enters in the area. He had also heard on the news about officers being targeted,” the report read.

Ding-dong-ditch

The report noted in the previous year, there were no reported break-ins, thefts, or mischief in the officer’s neighbourhood, and Brandon Police said there was only one instance in 2024 of a BPS officer being harassed.

“What is clear based on the evidence is that this was not a targeted home invasion of a police officer. This was a case of a bunch of young teenagers playing Ding Dong Ditch,” Sychuk wrote.

The report noted the teen did not suffer significant injuries from the incident but has suffered psychological trauma.