Repeat offender: Calgary man pleaded guilty and sentenced for tax fraud

August 26, 2022

Calgary, Alberta

Canada Revenue Agency

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced that Neil Smith of Calgary, Alberta, was sentenced on August 23, 2022 to a fine of $16,875, after pleading guilty in the Provincial Court of Alberta to eight counts of making false statements in Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax (GST/HST) returns under the Excise Tax Act. Mr. Smith is required to pay the full court imposed fine by March 2023.

A CRA investigation revealed that Mr. Smith was the Chief Financial Officer of WCOG (CDN) Operations Inc., an oil and gas company based in Calgary, and made statements on quarterly GST/HST returns between March 31, 2014 and December 31, 2015 falsely claiming a total worth of $33,750 of input tax credits related to unpaid corporate shareholders management fees.

Mr. Smith has previously pleaded guilty to making false statements on income tax returns filed on behalf of other taxpayers for the tax years of 2006 to 2009, for which he received an 18-month conditional sentence and a fine of $377,024.

All case-specific information above was obtained from the court records.

To maintain the fairness of our tax system, the CRA holds tax evaders, and those who facilitate tax evasion, accountable for their actions. For the five-year period between April 1, 2017, and March 31, 2022, there were 13 convictions related to tax preparers/promoters, both personally and for actions on behalf of clients. The courts sentenced the tax preparers/promoters to a total of $1.13 million in fines and 21 years of jail time.

In addition to the court imposed fines and/or jail sentences, convicted taxpayers have to pay the full amount of tax owing, plus related interest and any penalties assessed by the CRA.

The CRA is dedicated to maintaining the integrity of Canada’s tax system, thereby contributing to the social and economic well-being of Canadians. The CRA continues to aggressively pursue tax evasion, and false claims with all the tools available to it. The CRA works to make sure that individuals and businesses report all income earned and only claim benefits to which they are entitled, so that important benefit programs can be administered to those who need them. Any individual or business who underreports income, or claims losses or benefits to which they are not entitled may have to repay the benefit amounts and may be subject to other possible action.

The CRA has set up a free subscription service to help Canadians stay current on the CRA’s enforcement efforts.

Associated Links

Leads Program
Voluntary Disclosures Program

Contacts

Media Relations – Regional contact
TJ Madigan
Canada Revenue Agency
587-475-3816

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