Ad exec dodges jail in first sponsorship sentence
OTTAWA— A sentence has finally been handed down in the sponsorship scandal but the Montreal ad executive involved has avoided jail time.
Paul Coffin, who pleaded guilty last May to 15 counts of fraud, yesterday was given a conditional sentence in a Montreal courtroom of two years less a day, which will be served in the community.
Coffin was one of three men charged in the sponsorship scandal that rocked the Liberal government when it was highlighted in Auditor- General Sheila Fraser’s report in 2004. The sponsorship program, designed mainly to promote national unity in Quebec, allegedly saw $100 million in fees and commissions go to Liberalfriendly ad agencies from 1997 to 2003.
Liberal officials privately ad-
mitted it would have been better for them politically for Coffin to have been handed a heavy fine or even a short jail sentence.
“ The fact is people expect to see a standard of deterrence set, a strong message to reinforce that this is being dealt with seriously,” said a Liberal strategist.
Conservative justice critic Vic Toews said the sentence, which he called “ hardly an inconvenience” for Coffin, sets a dangerous precedent for other sponsorship prosecutions.
“ The only message this sends out is that if you can get away with it, that’s fine; if you get caught, you just have to repay the money,” he said. Quebec Superior Court Judge Jean- Guy Boilard meted out the sentence, which imposes a 9 p.m. curfew on Coffin during weeknights, after taking into account the repayment of nearly all the $ 1.55 million funnelled to his agency through bogus invoices and inflated commissions charged for work that in some cases was never done. The Crown had asked for a 34month jail sentence, but Boilard cited Coffin’s contrition and his efforts at restitution in agreeing with the defence suggestion of a conditional sentence.
“ Mr. Coffin is genuinely contrite but unfortunately he cannot turn the clock back,” Boilard said in court. “ In my view the risk of reoffending is extremely minimal, I would dare say inexistent.” As part of his sentence, the 63year- old Coffin also pledged to give university seminars on business ethics, and must hire an independent controller to approve all billing and invoices for his advertising business. The Conservatives and the Bloc Québécois predicted Coffin’s sentencing is merely the first in a series of developments this fall that will deepen the federal government’s embarrassment over the sponsorship program, launched in 1996 after the defeat of the 1995 sovereignty referendum.
“ I’m still waiting for the accountability at the political level, but that may not happen until the next election campaign,” said Conservative MP Gary Lunn ( Saanich- Gulf Islands). The Liberals have enjoyed a minor renaissance in the polls this summer, but Bloc MP Michel Guimond ( CharlevoixMontmorency) said “ the anger of Quebec voters hasn’t faded.”
“ As the weeks go by, with the trial coming up for (former Groupaction president Jean) Brault and ( retired sponsorship program bureaucrat Chuck) Guité and the report from Justice Gomery, people are going to see more and more developments in this file,” he said.
Brault and Guité, two of the central figures in the sponsorship imbroglio, are to stand trial beginning Oct. 3 for fraud charges relating to the program. Gomery, whose probe into the scandal wrapped up in June, is to issue a report with preliminary findings of fact on Nov. 1, and a second report containing his recommendations is to be wrapped up by Feb. 1. The judge who’ll preside at Brault and Guité’s trial said he may be forced to sequester the jury for most of the proceedings, and indicated he may even have to delay the trial due to potential impact of Gomery’s findings.
“ We need to make sure the trial is not put in jeopardy because of the Gomery report,” said Justice Fraser Martin, who rejected the Crown’s suggestion that he issue an order forbidding the release of Gomery’s report until after the trial has finished.
Guité and Brault were to have faced five counts each of fraud this past spring, but lawyers argued that a delay was necessary because of the ongoing testimony before Gomery.