Canadian Firefighter Charged with Theft from Patient

A Winnipeg firefighter has been charged in the theft of cash and jewelry from an elderly patient last year.

Several of Darren Fedyck's colleagues reported the incident days after the Oct. 2 call to assist a 76-year-old woman. 

"All members of the fire and paramedic service are shocked at these allegations, as these charges go against everything a firefighter or paramedic stands for," United Fire Fighters of Winnipeg President Alex Forrest told the Winnipeg Free Press last month. "We hope the allegations are untrue."

Officials say Fedyck, 46, was arrested around Christmas and is currently free on bail. He was suspended without pay from the department.

"He wasn’t originally turned in by co-workers out of fear of not having enough on him," a firefighter told the newspaper. "Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of us believe that our public trust is the only thing that matters. The point-one percent who don’t are just sad."

A source told the newspaper that the firefighters who reported the theft are facing scrutiny for their delay in reporting the incident.