Ahmed Farah was there in person when his case was discussed Wednesday morning at Prince Albert Provincial Court. (File photo/ paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Fraud case

Charges stayed in French Canadian Society of Prince Albert fraud case

Nov 15, 2023 | 1:00 PM

A man accused of stealing over $15,000 from the French Canadian Society of Prince Albert (SCFPA), said he knew for a long time he would be cleared of any wrongdoing.

That’s according to Kim Arial, the lawyer representing Ahmed Hassan Farah. On Wednesday, at Prince Albert Provincial Court, charges of fraud and theft over $5,000, were stayed by the Crown. The entire hearing was conducted in French.

“My client is reassured by the outcome but he has always had faith in our justice system and that this would be the outcome,” she told paNOW outside the courthouse, while standing beside and speaking for Farah, whose English is not fluent.

Farah, a former community leader with the SCFPA, was employed between early 2017 and March, 2018 and his responsibilities included the handling of finances. Noting the allegations date back six years, Arial explained they were made by one person who was not even part of the association, and the actual person who signed the cheques.

“Ultimately the Crown has acknowledged finally there was no chance these charges would hold up in court,” she said.

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A stay of proceedings halts prosecution of the case. If the Crown decides to recommence proceedings, they have up to one year to resume the case. Otherwise, it is is considered concluded.

The hearing on Wednesday had initially been scheduled for trial, following not guilty pleas that were entered last July. Crown prosecutor John Knox told paNOW the decision to stay the charges came about following extensive discussions with defence on Tuesday night, which in turn led to a re-evaluation of the case.

He added the Crown is always under an obligation to re-evaluate whether the charges meet prosecutorial standards including a reasonable likelihood of conviction and whether it is in the public interest to proceed.

“In this case the public interest has always been there, that’s not the issue. But in this case as a result of our discussions and our further interviews [with witnesses], we came to the conclusion late last night that the case no longer meets the prosecutorial standard,” he said.

Farah was living in Alberta when the charge was laid in November, 2022, and travelled to Prince Albert for Wednesday’s short hearing.

Michel Dubé, a former chair of the SCFPA, was called on to testify in the event the trial proceeded. He explained as a volunteer-led association, they hire administrators in the spirit of confidence and professionalism to do the job of administering the finances of the organization.

“I think this also shows that, as volunteer board members, we have to be more diligent in verifying each expense that is made corresponds to the actual need for that expense and so confidence is a big issue,” he said.

While noting his own surprise at the outcome, Dubé explained on the items where they thought there were some authorized expenses, there has been discovery that some of them were properly authorized in an administrative way. He added however there were other expenses made, in particular for equipment and that equipment has never been found.

“Not to bring blame where blame isn’t due but I think there was inadequate research done by the Crown to properly defend the case that was brought forward to them.”

In response, Knox told paNOW the Crown has to take what they’ve got and go forward from there.

“It may be that there are other avenues, but what we have now doesn’t meet our standard,” he said.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell