A Carcross RCMP officer has been charged with assault and uttering threats following an investigation into his conduct.

It’s alleged Const. Jason Potter, 37, committed two offences against a Carcross man who was under arrest and in the back of a police vehicle the night of May 15.

Potter later reported the incident to the Carcross detachment commander, which prompted an investigation by the Yukon RCMP Major Crimes Unit.

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team reviewed the police investigation, and agreed that criminal charges should be laid.

The alleged victim in the case, Duke Beattie, was charged with threatening to cause bodily harm to Potter, Potter’s wife and Const. Dan Rouleau, as well as resisting arrest.

Those were later withdrawn.

The Crown prosecutor on the case was not available this morning to comment on why this happened.

Staff Sgt. Brad Kaeding said to his knowledge, Beattie did not sustain any significant injuries during the alleged altercation. He was taken to the jail’s arrest processing unit, and was provided with some medical treatment there.

The court file, which typically contains some details about charges that are laid, was not available to the public this morning, as RCMP had not yet filed confirmation with the court registry that Potter had been served with the charges.

Potter is scheduled to appear in court in Carcross on July 28.

In the meantime, he is on administrative duty, Kaeding said Wednesday.

An internal RCMP code of conduct investigation is ongoing.

Kaeding said that can look at several different factors within the organization’s code of conduct, not just use of force.

Potter has not been involved in similar incidents in the community before, Kaeding said.

According to a police news release, Potter has been an RCMP officer for five years, and has worked in Carcross since February 2013.

Before that, he was stationed in Whitehorse.

Meanwhile, the file will be sent to an Outside Crown’s office for prosecution.

“We in the Yukon regional office have identified this as a conflict-of-interest file here and we will be looking for independent Crown counsel from outside the territory to conduct the prosecution,” Crown prosecutor Noel Sinclair said Wednesday.

“What we’re trying to avoid is any perception that an RCMP member is getting special treatment because they know our office and they know the prosecutors that work here.

“Whether or not that would happen, the question shouldn’t even arise.”