Collingwood residents have planned a rally at town hall Monday calling for action on allegations of fraud against Paul Bonwick, the mayor's brother and former MP.
Recently unsealed court documents reveal details of an ongoing police investigation into alleged fraud and breach of trust by both Bonwick and a former town employee.
However, after an investigation that has spanned five years, no charges have been laid, and police are mum on any details, saying the investigation is ongoing.
Earlier this week, CBC published a story referring to court documents submitted by Collingwood OPP for an investigation into alleged fraud and breach of trust.
The investigation centred around a deal between the town and a contractor for the two fabric membrane structures that now serve as Centennial pool and Central Park arena.
In 2011, the town began to explore ideas for a multi-use recreational facility. At that time, council created a steering committee to work on the project with input from the community.
Instead of building a multi-use facility, council voted to build two fabric membrane structures made by Sprung – one for Centennial pool and one for a new arena at Central Park.
The vote took place in August 2012, and the project was sole-sourced. In other words, the town did not open up a tendering process, as was commonplace for the town on projects of that scale ($12.4 million).
In August 2012, when town council made the final decision to hire BLT Construction to build the Sprung structures, a staff report did address sole-sourcing the work.
"Through staff research, it has been determined that there is only one supplier that can meet the specifications staff developed for the facilities," stated the staff report to council. "If one of the more traditional forms of construction had been determined to provide the most cost-effective solution there would have been a further need to issue an RFP for construction since there are many companies capable of providing this service. There is only one manufacturer of architectural membrane structures that has a proven track record of success and that distributes this technology."
A Facebook event, started by Jennifer Knight, encourages residents to meet at town hall on Monday, June 25 at 4 p.m., prior to the council meeting scheduled at 5 p.m. The event description states: "It is time to show our frustration and demand accountability by those involved."
The rally event photo on Facebook is of Mayor Sandra Cooper. There were no allegations against Cooper in the police document released.
"I was not aware of a rally," said Cooper on June 21. "It's an election year once again."
Cooper has already announced she will not be running for a spot on council again.
Here’s what we know about the investigation and those court documents.
The document
The court document is a "production order application" filed July 23, 2014, by OPP Detective Constable Marc Lapointe. This 200-page document was authored by Lapointe. In it, he indicates he was the lead on the investigation, and he lays out the evidence he and his team have collected to that point.
Through the document, Lapointe is asking the courts to issue an order to a Scotiabank to produce specific account records.
According to Canadian law, a peace officer may apply for a production order, but it is up to a judge to grant the order. Before issuing a production order, a judge must be satisfied there are reasonable grounds to suspect an offence has been committed and that the data being sought will assist in the investigation of the offence.
A production order is similar to a warrant. A production order cannot be issued against a person or entity that is under investigation.
This application for a production order includes a detailed account of Lapointe’s evidence and observations on the town’s purchase of the two Sprung structures.
There were no further documents released by the courts relating to this investigation. It is not clear whether or not a judge granted the production order requested by Lapointe.
Lapointe requested the courts seal his application, suggesting its release would compromise the proposed investigative strategy. According to the CBC, the courts unsealed the document at the CBC's request.
Lapointe said he needed financial records to show where portions of the $756,000 consulting fee went after the payment was made by BLT Construction.
The allegations
No charges have been laid, and the allegations have not been proven in court.
The allegations Lapointe makes in his applications are as follows:
- Ed Houghton, as acting CAO of the Town of Collingwood, committed a breach of trust during his involvement in the Sprung structure deal.
- Paul Bonwick and Abigail Stec (who worked for Bonwick) defrauded the Town of Collingwood of in excess of $5,000 in the Sprung structure deal.
Neither Houghton, Bonwick or Stec had been interviewed by police before Lapointe submitted his application for a production order.
Lapointe claims in his application that Bonwick received a payment of $754,740 for his work as a consultant on the project. Lapointe also states the town of Collingwood appeared unaware of Bonwick’s involvement. Bonwick’s consultant fee came from BLT Construction Services, the company hired by the town to install the Sprung instant structures. The town worked with BLT to select a structure, but Bonwick did not attend any meetings with town staff or council, according to Lapointe’s report.
Lapointe claims Bonwick’s involvement and consulting fee were “kept secret from council as a whole,” but Houghton and former Deputy Mayor Rick Lloyd “are believed to have possessed knowledge of Paul Bonwick’s involvement as a consultant.”
Lapointe suggests the payment to Bonwick was “shrouded in various layers of secrecy,” and suggested the municipality was the victim of fraud.
Lapointe includes copies of emails in his application showing Lloyd and Houghton emailing Bonwick at least one time about the Sprung deal.
Lapointe alleges Houghton committed a breach of trust through his involvement in the town’s decision to purchase the Sprung structure and suggests Houghton knew Bonwick was working as a consultant for the contractor.
The present
In a statement issued from headquarters in Orillia, the OPP say the investigation is ongoing.
“We cannot speculate as to what Detective Lapointe may have said in 2012, as we cannot disclose any particulars involving suspects or persons of interest in this matter,” said Sgt. Carolle Dionne, provincial media relations coordinator. “I can only confirm that this investigation remains ongoing. Information will be made available at the conclusion of this investigation.”
Dionne said Lapointe is no longer the lead investigator in the matter, and charges – if warranted – will be laid at the conclusion of the probe. She said the public would be notified via media release.
“Investigations involving allegations of any criminal wrongdoing can be very sensitive due to the complexity and thoroughness required to compile evidence that can be used in a court of law,” said Dionne. “Because of the nature of such complaints, it may not be readily apparent what investigative actions are being pursued by police.”
As for how much longer the investigation will be ongoing, Dionne said: “We will take all the time that is required and apply the necessary resources to do so."
In an email to CollingwoodToday on June 21, Bonwick said the OPP have never requested an interview or any other form of engagement.
“Approximately three years ago, my lawyer contacted one of the officers responsible for the case and was informed that I was no longer a person of interest in this matter and that no charges were pending,” said Bonwick.
The OPP’s position is not to comment on an ongoing investigation.
CollingwoodToday asked Bonwick if we would do anything differently if he approached the same deal today with the knowledge he now possesses. He had this to say:
“Hindsight is a wonderful thing,” said Bonwick. “As it would be the client’s option, I would have recommended to BLT/Sprung to publicly disclose that they had engaged Greenleaf [Bonwick’s company] for consulting services. It is important to note that it is not required for companies that engage consulting companies to announce the engagement publicly.”
Bonwick suggested not closing an investigation is “a very common practice with police,” and claimed it is a way to avoid “civil litigation against the parties that alleged the wrongdoing … in the face of no charges being laid.”
OPP confirmed multiple times the investigation is ongoing and active.
In a past media interview, Lloyd said he would also do things differently if given the chance, stating he would have gone out to look for other requests for proposals. He called that an “extra step” and maintains council made the right decision to go with Sprung structures.
Houghton also said the right decision was made.
“Looking back is always a good thing, but I understand that the buildings have been a good asset for the town,” he said in an email to CollingwoodToday.
He also said he has not been interviewed by OPP since the start of this investigation in 2013.
Current Mayor Sandra Cooper was mayor at the time of the Sprung structure deal. Lapointe does not include her in any allegations, nor does he present any evidence she was aware of her brother’s involvement or used her influence as an elected official to help her brother.
"Going back five years is not an option," said Cooper in an email to CollingwoodToday. "The single-sourced facility was reviewed by staff and supported by staff. Council's decision was the best option at that point in time. Recreation facilities were discussed by councils over 20 years. It was affordable and thoroughly researched by staff. [It passed by an] 8-1 vote. Families and visitors have enjoyed the amenity for the past five years."
Lloyd is no longer a member of town council. Houghton has retired and is no longer employed by the Town of Collingwood.
The policy
The Town of Collingwood has an Accountability and Transparency policy, which was last updated on April 8, 2013.
The policy states the town will be open, accountable and transparent to stakeholders in its financial dealings and specifically references purchasing/procurement practices as an example of that transparency.
The town’s procurement bylaw was updated in 2017, and includes the following regarding conflicts of interest: “All participants in a procurement process, including any external consultants or other service providers acting on the Town’s behalf, must declare any perceived, possible or actual conflicts of interest.”
The procurement bylaw also includes a section for suppliers, stating they must also declare conflicts of interest and may not lobby members of council or town officers or engage in any prohibited communication during a procurement process.
The procurement bylaw also states it was created to “encourage competitive procurement and ensure the principles of fairness, objectivity, transparency and accountability are reflected in the town’s procurement processes.”
The bylaw mandates that for a standard procurement, the town will solicit bids from an existing supplier roster, inviting bids from a minimum of three suppliers or conducting an open competition and publicly soliciting bids.
