St. Catharines cancer fraudster dodges jail
MONTE SONNENBERG
SIMCOE REFORMER
A St. Catharines con artist who said she had cancer in order to scam a woman out of nearly $200,000 has managed to avoid jail time.
Michelle Meade, 43, previously pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud over $5,000.
She was charged in 2011 after extracting money from an elderly widow in Walsingham, Ont., with a false story that she needed the cash to pay for cancer treatments.
This was Meade’s second conviction for fraud over $5,000. In 1998, Meade bilked a Kitchener man out of $35,000 after telling him she needed money to treat malignant breast cancer. In both cases, Meade was not ill. Last Thursday at the Norfolk County courthouse in Simcoe, Justice Robert Thompson accepted a sentencing agreement of two years less a day, three years probation and a restitution order in the amount of $75,000.
As part of the agreement, Meade must serve the first six months of her sentence under house arrest. The remainder of the sentence will be served in the community.
Once Meade’s house arrest is over, she will be summoned to appear before Thompson for further instructions if she fails to make restitution at a rate of $2,000 per month.
The sentence was little consolation for Jean Beausaert, 82, who told court Thursday that Meade’s fraudulent behaviour destroyed her life and made her a pariah in her Walsingham community.
“I think she should’ve got a jail term,” Beausaert said after the sentencing. “I would not want anyone else to go through what my family has gone through. My son-in-law had a stroke and it was because of the stress this caused our family.”
Beausaert got to know Meade in 2007 when the latter was dating her grandson. Beausaert grew fond of Meade and was devastated to learn of her cancer diagnosis, which later turned out to be bogus.
Beausaert began emptying her bank account and liquidating assets to pay for Meade’s “treatments.” She also borrowed from family and friends. The gravy train ended when one of Beausaert’s neighbours began asking questions.
“I owe many good people money thatIhavenowaytorepay,”Beausaert told court in a victim impact statement. “These people trusted me. My credit is ruined. I cannot even get a phone in my name.
“Michelle took all she could from me and left me sitting there with $5 to my name. Creditors have been calling and demanding money. The financial companies have been threatening to take my house and I may become homeless. I have had to sell a lot of things out of my house to buy groceries.”
Meade also has a conviction for fraud under $5,000 dating to 2008.
Meade declined an offer to address court.
She told the judge that the criminal record read in court is accurate and that she understands the terms of her sentence.
The sentence was negotiated by Crown attorney Larry Brock and Simcoe defence lawyer Edward Kiernan.
In his ruling, Thompson said the sentence is appropriate and “does not call the administration of justice into disrepute.”
“Failure to provide restitution will cause you to have breached the probation order,” he told Meade.
Restitution has been reduced to $75,000 because a finance company involved wrote off nearly $125,000 in losses that were charged against Beausaert’s home.
Beausaert said that she still owes friends and family more than $30,000.
Meade has been married for nine years. She has a 16-year-old daughter who lives in Norfolk County.
The Crown recommended that authorities fit Meade with an electronic bracelet so her movements can be monitored for the duration of her house arrest.
During her previous scams, Meade has gone by the names Michelle Clemmer and Michelle Meller.