OTTAWA, October 20, 2009 – The Honourable Rob Nicholson, P.C., Q.C., M.P. for Niagara Falls, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, and Mr. Daniel Petit, M.P. for Charlesbourg-Haute-Saint-Charles and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice, announced that tomorrow the Government will introduce legislation to provide tougher sentences for fraud, to help combat white-collar crime.
“Fraud can have a devastating impact on the lives of its victims, including feelings of humiliation for having been deceived into voluntarily handing over their life savings” said Minister Nicholson. “This legislation will help crack down on white-collar crime and increase justice for victims by providing tougher sentences for the criminals responsible.”
The government is committed to creating a two-year mandatory jail sentence for fraud over $1 million and adding new aggravating factors that can be considered when handing down sentences in fraud cases. These aggravating factors would include:
- the financial and psychological impact of the fraud on the victim, given the victim's particular circumstances, including their age, health and financial situation;
- if the offender failed to comply with applicable licensing rules or professional standards; and
- the magnitude, complexity, and duration of the fraud and the degree of planning that went into it.
The proposed legislation would also require judges to consider requiring offenders to make restitution to victims in all fraud cases. It would permit the court to order the offender not to take employment or do volunteer work involving authority over other people's money. The court would also be permitted to receive a Community Impact Statement that would describe the losses suffered as a result of a fraud perpetrated against a particular community, such as a neighbourhood, a seniors' centre or a club.
“Canadians have told us they want action on crime and our Government is delivering,” said Mr. Petit. “This legislation would acknowledge that the effects of white collar crime in terms of loss of financial security and confidence are extremely serious.”
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