R. v. MacDonnell

R. v. MacDonnell

The judge found beyond a reasonable doubt that Ralston MacDonnell was the directing mind who knowingly and dishonestly diverted funds subject to statutory deemed trust (HST and payroll deductions) into undisclosed/private accounts and for personal use, evaded RTPs and trust examinations, issued NSF cheques and made misleading proposals to CRA; those acts constituted both fraud under s.380(1)(a) and willful evasion under s.327(1)(c) of the Excise Tax Act, and the defence explanations and testimony lacked credibility and did not raise a reasonable doubt.

Citation
2021 NSPC 22
Parties
Crown: Her Majesty the Queen; Accused (individual): Ralston MacDonnell; Accused (corporate): MacDonnell Security Risk Management Limited; Accused (corporate): MacDonnell Group of Canada Limited; Accused (corporate): 3182552 Nova Scotia Limited
Court
Nova Scotia Provincial Court
Jurisdiction
Canada
Judgment Date
18 May 2021
Procedural Posture
Criminal / Trial Judgment (decision)
Outcome
All accused found guilty on all charges (fraud under s.380(1)(a) and tax evasion under s.327(1)(c) ETA)
Legal Topics
Fraud, Tax Evasion, Deemed Trust, Requirement to Pay (rtp), Trust Examination, Credibility Assessment, Circumstantial Evidence
Source Language
English
Criminal Law Tax Law Corporate/commercial Law Fraud Tax Evasion Deemed Trust Requirement to Pay (rtp) Trust Examination +2 more

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Parties

Her Majesty the Queen

Crown

Ralston MacDonnell

Accused (individual)

MacDonnell Security Risk Management Limited

Accused (corporate)

MacDonnell Group of Canada Limited

Accused (corporate)

3182552 Nova Scotia Limited

Accused (corporate)

Procedural Posture

Criminal / Trial Judgment (decision)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the accused committed fraud contrary to s.380(1)(a) Criminal Code by diverting HST and payroll source deductions
  2. 2 Whether the accused wilfully evaded or attempted to evade payment/remittance contrary to s.327(1)(c) Excise Tax Act
  3. 3 Whether deemed trust provisions convert non-remittance into criminality

Ratio Decidendi

The judge found beyond a reasonable doubt that Ralston MacDonnell was the directing mind who knowingly and dishonestly diverted funds subject to statutory deemed trust (HST and payroll deductions) into undisclosed/private accounts and for personal use, evaded RTPs and trust examinations, issued NSF cheques and made misleading proposals to CRA; those acts constituted both fraud under s.380(1)(a) and willful evasion under s.327(1)(c) of the Excise Tax Act, and the defence explanations and testimony lacked credibility and did not raise a reasonable doubt.

Court Disposition

All accused found guilty on all charges (fraud under s.380(1)(a) and tax evasion under s.327(1)(c) ETA)

Orders

  • All accused convicted on the counts charged: fraud contrary to s.380(1)(a) Criminal Code and tax evasion contrary to s.327(1)(c) Excise Tax Act
  • Sentencing to follow (no detailed sentence recorded in decision)