A 67-year-old narcissistic fraudster who defrauded Quebec inventors of millions of dollars was set to receive a $20,000 scholarship to return to university upon his release from prison, while his victims are still waiting to be compensated. But Christian Varin won’t get a cent.
“The Board is mindful that the misuse of funds entrusted to you, manipulation and lack of candor are at the heart of your cycle of delinquency,” wrote the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) in a decision made public Wednesday.
As special conditions, the Commission thus prohibits Christian Varin from contracting any loan in order to “protect the company”.
THE PRESS
Christian Varin
Christian Varin was sentenced to five years in prison in September 2022 for large-scale fraud. For years, he used his fake organization, the Fédération des inventeurs du Québec, to defraud hundreds of inventors. He promised them that he would take steps to acquire legal patents to protect their inventions. However, he did not actually do so.
Many inventors, convinced that they held their precious patents, have thus lost their life project. Christian Varin, for his part, pocketed three million dollars. He spent part of it to build the “Pavillon des inventeurs” in Shefford. A building which was however ravaged by a suspicious fire.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
A luxurious building in Shefford belonging to Christian Varin, the “Pavillon des Inventeurs”, was the victim of a suspicious fire.
Christian Varin was granted semi-liberty last spring. At the same time, an order was issued by the Court to seize the triplex of his partner Sylvain Riendeau and the couple’s bank accounts in order to prevent their assets from being squandered. The victims still hope to be compensated.
It is in this context that Christian Varin recently declared himself “single” in order to receive a $20,000 scholarship and a $7,000 student loan for his return to university. An approach that his case management team (EGC) does not support given the many victims who have never been reimbursed.
The Commission also questions the fact that Varin declared himself single in order to obtain this funding and highlights his “lack of transparency” and his “elastic values”.
Also, Christian Varin had not notified his EGC that he was affected by a seizure order from the Court. Also, it turns out that Varin is still linked to several dissolved companies and to a company in the process of being dissolved. However, he had denied in a questionnaire that he was still linked to a company.
“So, instead of answering your stakeholders frankly and transparently about your financial transactions, you answer in a roundabout way so as to dodge a simple question, and this, on more than one occasion. You are also not very transparent with them on several aspects related to your finances,” the Commission concludes.