Retired Detective Sentenced for Leaking Police Database Info

Bill Clark, a veteran Edmonton homicide detective with nearly 50 years on the job, was sentenced Wednesday to a one-year conditional discharge after pleading guilty to leaking confidential police information to a journalist.

Clark, 66, unlawfully accessed a password-protected police database and shared information with a Global News journalist beginning in 2023. The leaks included a video of a Pizza Hut clerk being shot by Roman Shewchuk, the teenager who four days later killed two Edmonton police officers.

On March 12, 2023, security footage of the Pizza Hut shooting appeared on Global News within hours of another officer texting Clark the footage. Pizza Hut management was shocked to see the video they had provided to EPS in confidence broadcast on the news, according to an agreed statement of facts. "Pizza Hut management lost trust in EPS and for a time refused to provide further video evidence in their possession," the court documents state.

Shewchuk remained at large at the time. On March 16, 2023, he shot and killed EPS constables Brett Ryan and Travis Jordan.

In early 2024, investigators found Clark's work phone had been used to call the Global journalist, and examination of his deactivated device revealed extensive communications with the journalist over WhatsApp. Clark had copied details from the daily highlights database and shared screenshots about homicides, officer-involved shootings, and major crashes.

Court of King's Bench Justice Shane Parker sentenced Clark to the conditional discharge, meaning he will avoid a criminal record if he stays out of legal trouble for one year. Parker noted Clark has already lost the career that defined him since he joined EPS in 1979. "He is not leaving with any accolades, but rather a badge of shame," Parker said.