A crook at the head of a Laval accounting firm was found guilty Tuesday of having defrauded a client of more than $100,000 by pretending to pay the tax authorities, while she was filling her pockets. Already convicted of theft and fraud, Nathalie Ratthé continues to offer her accounting services to entrepreneurs.
“Mobile and available, I work for you and with you. My deep desire is to help entrepreneurs in Laval and Montreal,” boasts Nathalie Ratthé on the website of her firm SOS Entrepreneurs, where she describes herself as an accounting advisor.
The 60-year-old Blainville resident, however, brags less about her criminal history: in 2017, she pleaded guilty to theft charges and was given an eight-month suspended sentence and two years’ probation. Then, last November in Montreal, Nathalie Ratthé pleaded guilty to one count of fraud. His sentence has not yet been imposed.
The fraudster was also convicted in 2021 of illegally practicing public accounting. Nathalie Ratthé is not a member of the Order of Chartered Professional Accountants of Quebec. Note that “accountant” is not a reserved title, only that of CPA is.
Monday afternoon, Nathalie Ratthé hoped to be acquitted at the end of her trial in another fraud case. However, Judge Claude Leblond found her guilty, despite the victim’s lack of reliability and credibility. She now faces prison.
In this case, the accountant took care of the finances of the owner of a Montreal bar between 2015 and 2017. He had “total confidence” in Nathalie Ratthé.
For several years, the fraudster made her client believe that the checks he signed were intended for the tax authorities. However, she instead deposited them in the coffers of her firm Fidem, then withdrew equivalent funds.
At trial, the defense tried to make believe that Nathalie Ratthé had received more than $100,000 in fees in this case, since her client wanted to pay as little tax as possible.
“If the accused had had the tax interests of the complainant so much at heart, how is it that in no place do we see invoices, invoice numbers, mentions of fees or procedures so that her client could deduct these amounts? », asked Judge Leblond.
Certain checks put into evidence could, however, have been signed to pay fees, the judge clarifies.
Nathalie Ratthé’s scheme coincides with the deposit of $525,000 – the proceeds from the sale of the bar – in the victim’s bank account. “This is the motive of the accused,” decides the judge.
Sentencing submissions will take place in the coming months.
Me Denis Trottier represented the public prosecutor, while Me Roxanne Hamelin defended the fraudster.