Peel police say a officer will forfeit 15 days’ pay after she admitted to leaving a loaded, police-issued firearm unattended in a change room inside a busy Mississauga, Ont., mall. Const. Zahra Yusufzay was charged under the Police Services Act after Peel police say she left her duty belt, which included a firearm, handcuffs, and an additional loaded magazine, in a clothing store in Square One Shopping Centre back on Dec. 16, 2024. According to an agreed statement of facts submitted during a disciplinary hearing, Yusufzay was working as a plainclothes officer when she entered the Mango clothing store inside the mall while on her lunch break. She entered a change room to “try on pants for work” and removed the police-issued equipment. While in the change room, Yusufzay received a phone call to do a translation over the phone. “Yusufzay then exited the change room and left the store in order to do that translation in her car in the parking lot by phone, inadvertently leaving her police-issued equipment unattended in the change room,” the statement of facts read. The equipment was later located by an employee of the store, who reported the discovery to mall security. Peel Regional Police paid-duty officers responded and secured the equipment before reporting it to the officer’s supervisor, who attended the store. According to the statement of facts, Yusufzay later realized that she had left the belt behind and made calls to the Mango store and mall security. A “very apologetic” Yusufzay returned to the store and was reunited with her equipment, the statement of facts notes. The police service’s internal affairs unit was notified and months later, on March 11, 2025, she was charged under the Criminal Code with unsafe storage of a firearm. “Yusufzay accepted responsibility for her actions and by this agreement is deemed to have pleaded guilty to conduct that undermined, or is likely to undermine, public trust in policing,” the settlement agreement between Peel police and Yusufzay read.
