Supervisor guilty of negligence in deaths of four workers who fell 13 storeys

A Toronto project manager who sent his crew up 13 storeys without being properly secured was convicted Friday in their deaths, more than five years after their scaffolding collapsed and sent them plummeting to the ground. Vadim Kazenelson was found guilty of four counts of criminal negligence causing death and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm, for a fifth worker who was seriously injured in the fall on Christmas Eve 2009. Kazenelson was aware that fall protections were not in place, but he nevertheless allowed his workers to board the swing stage, Ontario Superior Court Judge Ian MacDonnell said. The construction company involved in the case, Metron Construction Corp., pleaded to criminal negligence causing death and was fined $750,000 in 2013. The company that supplied the swing stage, Ottawa-based Swing N Scaff Inc., was fined $350,000 for failing to ensure the platform was in good condition.