(Ottawa) One of the men behind the famous theft of 2,700 tons of maple syrup in Saint-Louis-de-Blandford will ultimately have to pay a compensatory fine of 9.1 million.
Posted at 10:06 a.m.
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled Thursday that a court does not have the discretion to lower the amount to be paid for the sole benefit of the offender from his crime, as the Quebec Court of Appeal did in this case. Richard Vallières was found guilty, in 2016, of fraud, trafficking and theft concerning the imposing quantity of maple syrup from the Fédération des producteurs acéricoles du Québec.
“The fact of separating the income and expenses of the offender in order to establish his profit margin would essentially amount to legitimizing the criminal activity”, can we read in the judgment rendered unanimously.
The decision of the highest court in the country also means that Mr. Vallières will have 10 years to pay his due, otherwise he faces six years in prison.
At first instance, the Superior Court had determined that the compensatory fine should be approximately $10 million, but the Court of Appeal had revised this amount downwards to approximately one million dollars.
The Supreme Court of Canada, which heard the case last November, sided with the Superior Court’s interpretation. She withdrew $828,602.43, an amount subject to a restitution order.