Ex-employee accused of stealing from non-profit

A Red Deer man faces fraud charges after allegedly stealing more than $100,000 from a non-profit Christian motorcycle group.

The 53-year-old, who was a former office administrator for the Red Deer chapter of the Christian Motorcyclists Association of Canada between September 2013 and June 2015, is alleged to have used fraudulent e-transfers, forged cheques and misused the club’s credit card.

Red Deer RCMP began the fraud investigation in 2016 after his former employer reported irregularities in its banking activity.

With the support from Canada’s financial intelligence unit, FINTRAC, Red Deer RCMP financial crime investigators found a pattern of theft over a period of almost two years.

Kenneth Van Someren has been charged with two counts of fraud over $5,000 and one count each of uttering forged documents, trafficking in property obtained by crime and possession of stolen property over $5,000.

Van Someren has been remanded in custody and is expected to make his first court appearance in Red Deer on March 24.