Report highly critical of RCMP handling of industrial drowning

A new report is highly critical of the way the RCMP conducted an investigation into an industrial accident that claimed a life.

Andrew Gnazdowsky, 26, drowned while working at a Nova Scotia Power reservoir in October of 2020. The report, by the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission (CRCC), found that the initial investigation into Gnazdowsky’s death was “grossly inadequate and unreasonable.”

The report also found that the investigating officer failed to take reasonable steps to secure what could have been considered a crime scene.

The CRCC is an arm’s-length civilian body that hears complaints against the RCMP. In this case, the complaint came from Andrew’s sister, Nicole Gnazdowsky.

“It is nice to finally get that recognition and acknowledgment that they did mess up to the degree that they did, that I knew that they did all along. It just shouldn’t have been such a battle to finally get somebody to say ‘I’m sorry, we messed up,’” Nicole Gnazdowsky said in an interview this week.

She has waged a six-year battle against authorities to get them to do more about her brother’s death. Soon after the tragedy, the investigation was handed over to the provincial government.

Three companies — Nova Scotia Power and two subcontractors, Brunswick Engineering and Consulting and Gemtec Consulting — were charged under Nova Scotia’s occupational health and safety legislation. All three companies were fined a total of $260,000 for their part in Andrew Gnazdowsky’s death.

Nicole Gnazdowsky’s initial complaint to the RCMP about the way they had handled the file was rejected. 

Nicole Gnazdowsky spent months sifting through information related to her younger brother’s death. (Robert Short/CBC)

Insp. Cory Bushell wrote to her in April of 2025, saying he could find no problems with the initial RCMP investigation.

“Under the circumstances of this incident, as the RCMP determined that there was no apparent evidence of a criminal offence and the matter was handed over to the LAE (Labour and Advanced Education), it was incumbent upon the LAE to notify the RCMP should their inquiry uncover any evidence of a criminal offence. This did not occur,” he wrote.

But the CRCC disagreed with Bushell’s assessment. It found that the RCMP were too quick to hand the scene over to Nova Scotia Power and did not conduct a proper investigation as to whether criminal charges should be laid.

The commission noted that the roles of police and provincial labour investigators are very different and the RCMP should have continued looking into the circumstances surrounding Gnazdowsky’s drowning to see whether there was any criminal liability.

While it is highly critical of the RCMP’s performance, the CRCC noted that after reviewing the evidence and consulting with Crown prosecutors, the RCMP determined that a criminal investigation would be unlikely to lead to a successful prosecution.

As a result of what it saw as failures in RCMP conduct, the CRCC recommended that more training should be undertaken, both by the officers directly involved in this case and for the force in general.

In a response to CBC News, RCMP Supt. Don Moser said the force is working on those changes. 

“The RCMP has committed to measures to address the issues identified in this matter, including operational guidance and training concerning workplace death investigations and the protection of potential crime scenes, as well as policy work in H Division,” he wrote.

“We are truly sorry for the distress and frustration the Gnazdowsky family experienced during an already devastating time.”

Nicole Gnazdowsky says she isn’t sure what the future holds for her, since her efforts have culminated in this report.

“I want to make sure that going forward these recommendations are put in place and that we see some actual change going forward, otherwise I can’t see myself shutting up about it. I’ve gone too far to shut up about it now, you know?”

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