Former Halton manager gets suspended sentence, probation
A former Halton Region manager found guilty of fraud and forgery has been given a suspended sentence and 18 months of probation.
David Ohashi, 60, was found guilty by a jury in June 2019 of fraud over $5,000, fraud under $5,000 and uttering a forged document in connection with his position as a high-ranking manager in Halton's water and wastewater division.
The charges related to travel expenses and an allegation that Ohashi interfered with a tendering process to benefit a particular vendor as part of a $7.8-million upgrading project.
But Superior Court Justice Erika Chozik said despite the jury's guilty verdict on the fraud over $5,000 charge, there is no evidence that Mr. Ohashi stood to gain anything."
The Crown has not proven a well-orchestrated systemic' large scale fraud that put millions of dollars at risk," Chozik said. I am not satisfied that the fraud resulted in any actual loss to the region."
Chozik decided to stay the guilty verdict against Ohashi for uttering a forged document. She handed him a three-month suspended sentence for the fraud under $5,000 charge and a 15-month consecutive suspended sentence for the fraud over $5,000 along with 18 months of probation.
David Norris, a former contractor to Halton Region who was tried along with Ohashi, also avoided prison after being found guilty of fraud over $5,000, municipal corruption and paying a secret commission to a municipal official. The charges related to allegations of fraudulent invoices sent to Halton and a secret commission paid to another Halton employee.
Norris was sentenced to six months less a day of house arrest for the fraud over $5,000 conviction. He was also handed 18 months consecutive for the secret commissions conviction where Norris must observe an evening to early-morning curfew at his residence.
Chozik chose to stay Norris' guilty verdict for municipal corruption.
The Crown attorney had been seeking a penitentiary sentence of two to three years for Ohashi and four to five years in prison for Norris.
In her sentencing decision, Chozik stated she had received victim impact statements from Halton Region's chief administrative officer, but she gave them no weight.
The judge said the victim impact statements attempted to suggest the two men were guilty of even more frauds and tried to introduce new evidence that makes claims that were not proven - and not even alleged - at this trial."
My task is to sentence them for the offences proven by the Crown and nothing else," Chozik said.
The two men are still facing a civil lawsuit.
In 2019, The Spectator published an exclusive investigation based on a confidential report obtained from a whistleblower that raised questions about the scope of Ohashi's actions while he was employed by Halton Region.
The 50-page report was prepared by an external forensic accounting firm on behalf of the region in October 2018, two years after Ohashi was charged.
The report, which was provided to Halton's director of legal services, alleges Halton Region spent tens of millions of dollars over more than a decade on bogus payments, faked invoices and unnecessary equipment.
Steve Buist is a Hamilton-based investigative reporter at The Spectator. Reach him via email: sbuist@thespec.com