OPP name 18-year-old charged with 1st-degree murder of constable near Hearst, Ont. (original) (raw)
An 18-year-old man from Hearst has been formally charged with first-degree murder after an Ontario Provincial Police constable was seriously injured during an investigation near the town and later died.
Justin Veronneau of Hearst to appear in court June 24 in death of Const. Tarun Bali
· CBC News
· Posted: Jun 09, 2026 4:55 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours ago
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Ontario Provincial Police Const. Tarun Bali was killed in the line of duty on Tuesday. He had 2½ years of service with the force. (Ontario Provincial Police)
An 18-year-old man from Hearst, Ont., has been formally charged with first-degree murder after a provincial police (OPP) constable was seriously injured Tuesday during an investigation near the town and later died.
An OPP release Wednesday named Justin Veronneau as the accused in the death of Const. Tarun Bali, who'd been in the force for 2½ years.
Veronneau has also been charged with:
- Assault on police.
- Two counts of flight from police.
- Resisting arrest.
- Dangerous driving.
- Dangerous operation of a vehicle causing death.
He's scheduled to appear in court June 24.
On Tuesday evening, OPP Commissioner Thomas Carrique said the accused had escaped from a hospital, where he was being assessed under the Mental Health Act.
Officers were trying to apprehend him when a vehicle struck Bali, who was seriously injured and later pronounced dead.
This is the area where Bali was struck by a vehicle Tuesday near Hearst. (Jimmy Chabot/Radio-Canada)
OPP officers and a member of the Nishnawbe Aski Police Service (NAPS) took the accused into custody.
Bali was assigned to the Dufferin detachment in southern Ontario and had more than two years of service. Carrique said Bali had previously completed rotations in the James Bay detachment area.
Earlier, the OPP said in a release that the officers from the James Bay detachment were investigating in the Kendall Concession Road 7 and Concession Road 6 area near Hearst at around 12:30 p.m. ET Tuesday.
The OPP criminal investigation branch is looking into Bali's death, in conjunction with the Office of the chief coroner and the Ontario Forensic Pathology Service.
Officer 'well liked' and 'respected'
Carrique said he and his fellow officers were "absolutely heartbroken" with the loss of Bali.
"I can tell you that provincial Const. Bali dreamed of being a police officer."
OPP Sgt. René Paillé and Commissioner Thomas Carrique, left to right, provided an update on the case Tuesday evening. (Jimmy Chabot/Radio-Canada)
Carrique said he sat down with the officer's family and saw a photo of Bali when he was two years old, saluting next to a photo of a police officer.
In an interview with CBC News, OPP Association president David Sabatini said other members of the Dufferin detachment are grieving.
"Const. Bali was a very well liked and respected member of [the Dufferin] detachment and of the OPP organization," he said.
"This is every police and family member's worst nightmare. It's another reminder of the dangers that our members face every day as they serve to protect the citizens of Ontario."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jonathan Migneault is a CBC reporter/editor based in Sudbury. He is always looking for good stories about northeastern Ontario. Send story ideas to jonathan.migneault@cbc.ca.
With files from Jimmy Chabot