Two men accused of an extortion scheme last year — including a York Region police sergeant — are suing the Peel Police Services Board and a Peel detective, alleging they were victims of a “negligent” and “malicious” investigation that violated their Charter rights and unfairly damaged their reputations.

York police Sgt. Gurdip Panaich and Surjit Brar, a civilian, had their charges dropped last summer. Surjit’s brother, York Const. Sukhdeep Brar, is also a plaintiff in the case, because he alleges he was investigated but never charged. The trio filed a statement of claim in Ontario Superior Court on Dec. 7.

None of their allegations have been proven in court.

Panaich and the Brar brothers are claiming at least $1 million in damages. The lawsuit alleges that Peel Det. Robert Crane, who led the extortion investigation, ignored contradictory evidence and arrested Panaich and Surjit Brar without interviewing the men or a key witness. Crane then failed to provide disclosure to the defence during the first three court dates and was removed from the case, according to the statement of claim. The charges were dropped weeks later.