Former Crapaud funeral director pleads guilty to 66 fraud charges
CBC
A former funeral director accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars in funeral arrangements in Crapaud, P.E.I., has pleaded guilty to dozens of fraud charges.
Some family members of the victims came out of the courtroom Thursday in Charlottetown with tears in their eyes, hugging one another and saying they were relieved the case was moving forward.
Susan MacKay says her mother-in-law lost about $10,000 after the money she gave to the now-closed Dawson Funeral Home for her own funeral disappeared.
"We all feel so violated," MacKay said. "How our trust was betrayed in a member of the community we all looked up to and trusted — it takes a long time to get over something like that."
Lowell Oakes, who ran the funeral home, was charged with 66 counts of fraud last July.
That includes 36 counts of fraud over $5,000 and 30 counts of fraud under $5,000.
Oakes spoke briefly in court on Thursday to enter his plea, saying he understood the charges he was pleading guilty to.
Families CBC spoke to said it was emotional hearing all of the victims' names read out in court, and the amount of money they lost: $425,000 in total.
Some had prepaid funeral costs, others didn't.
All said they feel betrayed by Oakes.
"Just to hear all the names, and especially my mom, it just brought back a lot of sadness and frustration," said Kathy Norring.
Norring said her 96-year-old mother had given Oakes about $8,600. Now, she said, her mom is "going to have to pay for her own funeral again."
Crown attorney Christopher White read a statement of facts that said Oakes had a gambling addiction. Oakes' paperwork was described as "disorganized."
The court heard the former funeral director had also borrowed money from some victims, and that a bank manager accused him of mishandling business funds.
When the federal government tabled its 2025 budget last month, it included a proposal that tax fraud experts say is long overdue — if also a belated acknowledgement that the Canada Revenue Agency has been repeatedly duped into paying out untold millions in bogus tax refunds to scammers.
Talking with an AI chatbot can successfully convince people to change their votes and could affect the outcome of future elections, according to a new study.
While some are writing wishlists for Santa Claus, a group of Newfoundland and Labrador youth are writing their wishlist for the provincial government.
A horse owner near Stewiacke, N.S., says the current shortage of hay in the province is putting pressure on her financially.
Victoria Volkanova was remembering Jewish resilience and courage by celebrating Hanukkah on Sunday.
Winnipeggers are still digging out from this past week’s winter wallop, but the wait for roadside assistance is almost over, according to the provincial motoring association.
When long-time journalist Cornelia Naylor picked up the first copy of her newly printed community newspaper this week, it wasn’t something she had ever expected to do.
The province's police watchdog is investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman in Toronto Sunday.
Toronto police say a collision involving several vehicles in the city's east-end left one driver in life-threatening condition Sunday.
A church service in Stratford, P.E.I., brought together Christmas traditions from across the globe on Sunday.
On an extremely cold day, many people would prefer to stay home, cozy up under a blanket, and put on the TV, radio, or a favourite podcast.
In an era of Ring doorbells and No Soliciting signs, breaking the evening silence of a suburban London street can sometimes feel like a radical act.
For years, oil tanker traffic has been prohibited off the waters of northern British Columbia in order to protect environmentally sensitive coastlines from disaster.