Ottawa's Parliament Hill was the site of a national moment of remembrance on Sunday, September 27, as the 49th annual Canadian Police and Peace Officers' Memorial honoured six officers killed in the line of duty this year.
Six officers remembered
This year's ceremony honoured five police officers and one correctional services officer. Two of the six served in Ontario. OPP Sgt. Brandon Malcolm died in a single-vehicle crash in April 2026, and OPP Const. Tarun Bali was fatally struck by a car in June 2026.
The other officers honoured were Toronto Police Const. Marc Pinizzotto, who was shot while executing a search warrant connected to a "gun-for-hire" scheme, two days after Bali's death; Montreal Police Const. Mohamed Benreouane, who was shot and killed in a gunfight that also killed a civilian bystander and the alleged gunman; Sûreté du Québec Sgt. Anaïs Fortin-Cozzens; and Correctional Officer Nicolae Serban, who died in a crash while transporting an inmate.
What was said
Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree addressed the crowd on Parliament Hill, saying, "Not every police and peace officer makes it home. For the six officers we're honouring today, we remember their bravery and sacrifices."
Stephen Boucher, the memorial's national service coordinator, spoke to the toll behind the titles. "They're not just names," he said. "They're humans. They were moms and dads and brothers and sisters."
A wall that keeps growing
Since the memorial began in 1978, more than 900 names have been added to the glass tablets that line the perimeter wall on Parliament Hill, a permanent record kept just steps from where Sunday's ceremony took place. A three-day memorial run from Toronto to Ottawa concluded the day before the ceremony, bringing runners into the capital ahead of the service.
Why it matters here
For Ottawa, the memorial is more than a backdrop. It's held annually on Parliament Hill, meaning the capital hosts this remembrance every year regardless of where the officers being honoured served, and this year an Ottawa Police Service veteran helped guide the proceedings.
Sources: paNOW (Canadian Press), CP24
