Former RPS officer who misused police database to pursue relationships with victims faces court

A judge has reserved her sentencing decision in the case of a former Regina police officer charged with breach of trust. Donovan Maess reports.

Former Regina police officer Robert Semenchuck accessed the information of more than two dozen women using an internal database to pursue personal relationships.

Semenchuck, a former sergeant who was a 22-year member of the Regina Police Service (RPS), appeared at Regina Provincial Court Friday for a sentencing hearing after he pleaded guilty to one count of breach of trust and unauthorized use of a computer in November 2025.

The police service was first made aware of the complaints in early 2023 after a member of the public came forward with information.

At that time, he was suspended immediately and was blocked from accessing police databases.

Following investigation, Semenchuck was charged in March of 2025.

According to an agreed statement of facts, there were 33 victims total. The Crown says, “in excess of 10” women Semenchuck engaged in intimate relationships between February 2015 and April 2023.

“[Semenchuck] would reach out to the victims via text message with a message purportedly intended for another person,” the statement of facts read. “When the victims replied indicating the message had been sent to the wrong person, [he] would take the opportunity to engage the victims in a further text conversation.”

“Slowly building trust and a personal relationship,” it added.

Semenchuck had also used an alias at times, lying about his name and occupation to some of the victims.

Victims speak

Seventeen victim impact statements were submitted to the court Friday as part of the hearing, including nine women who read theirs aloud.

“I believed him, and I trusted him completely because I had no reason not to,” one woman said. “For 44 months, Jay [Lewis] was a part of my life.”

“When I found out the sweet, kind, gentle Jay Lewis was actually Sgt. Robert Semenchuck of the Regina Police Service: my world came crashing down,” she added.

• New protocols in place after Regina police officer allegedly used databases to pursue personal relationships with women

Investigators say some of the intimate relationships developed and maintained by Semenchuck while he was on duty as a police officer – including using RPS fleet vehicles and a work-issued cell phone.

“In some instances, [he] visited the residences of the victims, doing so in a police vehicle he parked nearby and while on duty,” the statement of facts said.

In some cases, victims were experiencing difficulties in their own lives, some of which Semenchuck would have been able to determine from his improper use of RPS’ system.

“I did not consent to an intimate relationship with Sgt. Robert Semenchuck,” another woman said. “I consented to intimacy with divorced engineer, Steve Perkins.”

“Now I’m embarrassed and ashamed. I thought I knew this man. I trusted him and believed him when he said he cared about me, that I was special,” she added.

“I once held you in very high regard. Now all I have for you is pity, because you are pitiful man,” another victim said looking directly at the offender.

“How did you find me? I had nothing to do with the police. I had never gone to the police station,” a fourth victim said. “What made you decide I would be one of the conquests?”

In addition to this pattern, other victims worked with Semenchuck and were aware of who he was but did not know of his use of the internal databases to access their information.

“It doesn’t matter how much information or how often it is accessed or what you did it,” a victim said. “You took what you have no right to, no right and no reason to invade my privacy. No right to take what was mine and what was supposed to be protected. When I learned of your actions, the feeling of invasion was intense.”

“How dare you do this to people,” she added.

“One night I didn’t even know he existed,” another woman detailed. “I didn’t know who this man was. I just bumped into him in the hallway. Later, I realized he knew exactly who I was.”

“Each time I think about this, I feel dirty and uncomfortable. I’m uncomfortable in my own skin,” she went on to say.

Police Chief responds

In addition to the more than a dozen women who spoke as victims, RPS Chief Lorilee Davies also presented at court Friday.

“I want to acknowledge the profound impact is conducted on individual victims,” she told the court. “I’m truly appalled what you have gone through is unimaginable and never should have happened.”

Many of the victims claimed they experienced an extreme loss of trust in all police as a result of these circumstances.

“I have to trust in the police and believe they are there to keep me and my community safe,” a woman said. “It’s difficult to process how a police officer could do this to me and so many other women.”

“[RPS] knows we have much work to do to regain your trust, if ever,” Davies responded. “We are deeply committed to this work.”

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Chief Davies added Semenchuck’s actions have tainted the service’s reputation world-wide.

“This is not the reputation I want for the hardworking and caring members of this service,” she said. “We entrusted Rob Semenchuck with a great amount of power and he took advantage of our organization and our employees by using his status as a police officer to do great harm to many women in our community.”

“As leader of this organization, you’ve embarrassed me, all of your former coworkers and future members of the Regina Police Service, and you have caused profound and irreparable harm to numerous individuals in our community,” Davies added.

Given an opportunity to speak, Semenchuck kept his remarks short.

“To everyone that was affected by this, I am truly sorry,” he said.

Joint submission

Crown prosecutor Chris Browne and defense counsel Nick Brown presented a joint sentencing submission to the court Friday.

It requests two years house arrest with several conditional orders in place, followed by three years probation.

Conditions of the sentence would include prohibition of owning a mobile phone or computer as well as non-contact orders with all victims.

“This is a very early guilty plea,” Browne said as part of his submission. “The resources to have this sort of trial would take a significant amount of time.”

“It would put victims through testifying. I can advise the court certain victims were willing to testify, others were reluctant,” the prosecution added.

The defense argued Semenchuck’s mental health concerns – including diagnosed depression, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder – were mitigating factors and should be considered in handing down a sentence.

“Our submission [of] rehabilitation is not speculative here,” said Brown. “it’s under way in that he has ongoing psychiatric care.”

Provincial Court Judge Marilynn Beaton reserved her sentencing decision Friday.

“I will not be rendering my decision today,” she told the court. “There is a lot of information I was just given, including all of the different statements.”

“I would like to take some time to see whether or not if I am in a position to accept the joint submission,” Judge Beaton added.

A joint submission is when both the Crown and the offender’s lawyer agree on the sentence they are asking the judge to give.

The Supreme Court of Canada does not take the rejection of a joint submission lightly.

“The court should only depart from joint submission where it lacks administration of justice, intentional or otherwise, or be contrary to the public interest,” the defense argued. “This is such a case, we submit, the court should accept the joint submission.”

Sentencing has been adjourned to Feb. 6 at 9:30 a.m.