'We're going to catch you': City workers fired following Toronto fraud investigation
Toronto’s top auditor is reporting a record number of fraud and waste allegations as part of her annual audit into wrongdoing within City Hall, leading to the firing of some city workers and even police prosecution.
The Auditor General’s office received 1,054 complaints via its reporting hotline last year, representing 1,450 allegations — the highest number since the program began in 2002.
“We cannot afford, literally, to have people defraud the taxpayers of the City of Toronto, and have waste,” Toronto Councillor Josh Matlow told CTV Toronto. “We need to make sure that every single dollar goes to the priorities of the people of this city.”
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
The allegations of fraud implicated municipal staff, residents, and companies doing business with City Hall.
In one instance, an unidentified builder was accused of constructing mansions with grandiose features not approved by the Toronto Building department.
One of the homes was more than 600 square metres in size and contained a basketball court and underground parking for six vehicles, auditor Tara Anderson noted.
“The builder made material changes to both houses without getting the proper approval,” she concluded, indicating that other homes may not comply with the code as well, “and therefore could be unsafe.”
In another instance of fraud a city employee was found to own a subcontracting company that was being granted municipal contracts, in breach of conflict of interest rules in at least four instances.
A member of the public, meanwhile, was found to have used fake identities to claim 31 fraudulent subsidy payments worth $61,000. The auditor referred that matter to the Toronto Police for prosecution.
In total, a dozen city workers were disciplined last year for fraud and waste, including a municipal employee who was fired for using sick days to work shifts at another job.
Another city worker submitted false benefits claims for 33 instances where no service was provided. That employee was also terminated, and is now ineligible to work for the city.
The auditor pegs the total loss to fraud and waste over the last five years at nearly $30 million.
“We do need every dollar,” audit committee member Paula Fletcher told CTV Toronto. “And we do need to say, ‘if you’re going to break the rules, we’re going to catch you.’”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6978852.1722008165!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
30% of town structures destroyed in Jasper wildfire: officials
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is set to tour the resort town of Jasper to see firsthand the devastation caused by wildfires.
'He was just gone': Police ramp up search for vulnerable 3-year-old boy in Mississauga, Ont.
Police in Mississauga are conducting a full-scale search of the city’s biggest park for a non-verbal toddler who went missing Thursday evening. Sgt. Jennifer Trimble told reporters Friday morning that there has been no trace of three-year-old Zaid Abdullah since 6:20 p.m., when he was last seen with his parents in Erindale Park, near Dundas Street West and Mississauga Road.
Driver charged after flashing high beams at approaching police
Orillia OPP arrested and charged a driver with impaired driving after flashing their high beams.
At least 4 buildings burned at Jasper Park Lodge, others damaged: Fairmont memo
The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge said Thursday afternoon most of its structures are 'standing and intact,' including its iconic main lodge.
Canada's Christine Sinclair: 'We were never shown drone footage'
Canada soccer great Christine Sinclair said on Friday national team players were never shown drone footage during the more than two decades she was on the team, following a spying scandal that cast a shadow over the Canadians at the Paris Games.
Winnipeg senior's account overdrawn $146,000 for water bill
A Winnipeg senior is getting soaked with a six figure water bill.
Irish museum pulls Sinead O'Connor waxwork after just one day due to backlash
An Irish museum will withdraw a waxwork of singer-songwriter Sinéad O’Connor just one day after installing it, following a backlash from her family and the public, it told CNN in a statement on Friday.
Paris Olympics kicks off with ambitious but rainy opening ceremony on the Seine River
Celebrating its reputation as a cradle of revolution, Paris kicked off its first Summer Olympics in a century on Friday with a rain-soaked, rule-breaking opening ceremony studded with stars and fantasy along the Seine River.
Major Canadian bank experiences direct deposit outage on payday
Scotiabank says it has fixed a technical issue that impacted direct deposits on Friday morning.