Close X
Saturday, November 30, 2024
ADVT 
National

Ontario recovers $11M in alleged COVID fraud

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 23 Jan, 2021 01:08 AM
  • Ontario recovers $11M in alleged COVID fraud

A former senior employee with the Ontario government has repaid more than $11 million in COVID-19 benefits the province alleges he took fraudulently, his lawyer said on Friday.

The unproven civil claim named Sanjay Madan, who had a senior IT role and helped develop the computer application for applying and approving the benefit for families with children.

In a brief statement, Madan's lawyer Christopher Du Vernet confirmed his client had made the repayment.

"In fact, the province has recovered in excess of the funds it presently alleges Mr. Madan took from the Families Support Program," Du Vernet said.

"However, it is also seeking its legal costs, interest and punitive damages, so the action continues."

In its untested lawsuit filed last fall, the province alleged Madan, his wife and two adult children who all worked for the Ontario government in information technology defrauded the province of at least $11 million.

The civil claim, which also sought $2 million in punitive damages, accused them and others of illegally issuing and banking cheques under the program that aimed to defray the cost of children learning at home.

"The Madan family exploited their positions of employment with Ontario and unique access to the (program) and payment processing system," the government alleged in the claim. "The plaintiff was uniquely vulnerable to Sanjay, particularly with respect to the integrity of the...application."

The Ministry of the Attorney General did not immediately confirm the recovered money, first reported by the Toronto Star.

Du Vernet said his client "deeply regrets" his actions and was awaiting results of medical opinions on his condition.

According to the lawsuit, Madan and his family opened more than 400 accounts at the Bank of Montreal between April and May. They then deposited around 10,000 cheques made out to fictitious applicants with thousands of non-existent children under the support program.

Most deposits were made over a four-week period starting on May 25, coinciding with a rule change that allowed more than five payments to be made to an applicant. The government alleges Madan either sparked the rule change or knew about it and took advantage.

In other court filings, Madan is said to have told the government that he could explain "all of this" and that he has "helped many families."

The government had served notice it intended to seize any money the family allegedly obtained fraudulently and obtained a court order to have their bank accounts turned over to the court pending the outcome of the lawsuit.

The government also obtained a court order freezing the family's assets, which included a list of properties in Toronto.

Madan was fired in November.

MORE National ARTICLES

Court appearance for teens accused in cop's death

Court appearance for teens accused in cop's death
Sgt. Andrew Harnett had pulled over an SUV and was hit and dragged on the road when the vehicle took off.

Court appearance for teens accused in cop's death

Man struck by three vehicles in Abbotsford, B.C

Man struck by three vehicles in Abbotsford, B.C
Officers responded to a collision on Highway 1 near the boundary between Abbotsford and Langley, B.C., early Sunday morning.

Man struck by three vehicles in Abbotsford, B.C

Canadian polar bear swims to ring in 2021 with pandemic-friendly charity events

Canadian polar bear swims to ring in 2021 with pandemic-friendly charity events
Organizers of “polar swims” across the country are inviting people to participate in COVID-friendly dips with backyard adaptations or physically distanced events.

Canadian polar bear swims to ring in 2021 with pandemic-friendly charity events

First Canadian babies of 2021 born as the clock struck midnight

First Canadian babies of 2021 born as the clock struck midnight
A baby born in a Montreal hospital may have been the first Canadian newborn of 2021. The Maisonneuve-Rosemont hospital said Friday that a boy named Arthur was born precisely at midnight.

First Canadian babies of 2021 born as the clock struck midnight

A new year renews concerns for hospitals grappling with COVID-19, experts warn

A new year renews concerns for hospitals grappling with COVID-19, experts warn
Patients in multiple Canadian hotspots are flooding hospitals at an alarming rate and expected to arrive in even greater numbers in the weeks to come, doctors and health centres said Friday.

A new year renews concerns for hospitals grappling with COVID-19, experts warn

Alberta cabinet minister regrets Hawaii vacation

Alberta cabinet minister regrets Hawaii vacation
EDMONTON - Alberta's municipal affairs minister apologized Friday for vacationing in Hawaii, despite recommendations to stay home, explaining that she wanted to keep up a 17-year family tradition of spending Christmas in the tropical locale.    

Alberta cabinet minister regrets Hawaii vacation