Const. Ireneusz "Eric" Czapnik (May 26, 1958 – December 29, 2009) was a member of the

Ottawa Police Service The Ottawa Police Service (OPS; French: ''Service de police d'Ottawa'') is the municipal police service of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, as well as most of the north east Ontario side of the National Capital Region. As of 2022, this police service ...

who was fatally stabbed in the early morning of December 29, 2009 at the

Ottawa Civic Hospital The Ottawa Civic Hospital is one of three main campuses of The Ottawa Hospital – along with the General and Riverside campuses. With 549 beds (including the Heart Institute), the Civic Campus has the region's only adult-care trauma centre, servin ...

. Former

RCMP The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; , GRC) is the Law enforcement in Canada, national police service of Canada. The RCMP is an agency of the Government of Canada; it also provides police services under contract to 11 Provinces and terri ...

Officer Kevin Gregson was convicted of his murder. Born in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

on May 26, 1958, Czapnik immigrated to

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

in 1990. He was married to Anna Korutowska and a father of four children. He has one sister who still resides in Poland along with his parents, Stanislaw and Josefa.

Career

At age 19, Czapnik served one year of mandatory military service. After his time in the

Polish Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland (, ; abbreviated SZ RP), also called the Polish Armed Forces and popularly called in Poland (, roughly "the Polish Military"—abbreviated ''WP''), are the national Military, armed forces of the Poland, ...

, he worked for seven years with Warsaw Aircraft Enterprise as an aircraft mechanic. He also worked for two years doing construction in

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

. In 1990, he immigrated to Canada and was an employee at Johnson's Business Interiors in Ottawa for 16 years; he became a manager before deciding on a career change. Czapnik joined the Ottawa Police Service on April 10, 2007. The career change meant that he was following in the footsteps of his father, who had worked as a police officer in

for 30 years. Czapnik was a member of the

for approximately three years.

Murder

While at the

on an unrelated call, Const. Eric Czapnik was stabbed and killed while he was sitting in his patrol vehicle completing his notes. The attack is believed to have been random and unprovoked. The suspect, Kevin Gregson, an ex RCMP officer was then pinned to the ground by four nearby paramedics who held him there until police could arrive. Gregson, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, robbery, and using an imitation firearm in the commission of an offense. He was convicted of first-degree murder and robbery on March 13, 2012. A statement by the Czapnik family was released in the hours after his death. It outlines his commitment to his job, community and love for his family.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Czapnik, Eric 1958 births 2009 deaths Canadian police officers People murdered in Ontario Polish emigrants to Canada Military personnel from Ottawa Military personnel from Warsaw Polish military personnel Canadian police officers killed in the line of duty 2009 murders in Canada