A former bureaucrat accused of embezzling public funds has pleaded guilty to stealing $47.4 million from the Ontario government.
The Ministry of the Attorney General says a judge sentenced Sanjay Madan to ten years in prison on Tuesday after a joint submission from the defence and the Crown.
Madan had faced two counts of fraud over $5,000 and two counts of breach of trust after he was accused of stealing nearly $11 million in COVID-19 relief funds.
The ministry said he was also accused of and pleaded guilty to stealing more than $36 million from the government through kickbacks from 2011 to 2020.
The province had sued Madan, his wife and two adult children, alleging they illegally issued and banked cheques aimed to offset the cost of kids learning at home during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020.
Madan had a senior IT role and helped develop a computer application related to a COVID-19 relief benefit before he was fired in 2020. His wife and two sons all worked for the province in information technology.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 4, 2023.
