A lawyer for a former Calgary city councillor has argued his client’s expense claims, which falsely included the names of 27 politicians from across Canada, were the result of administrative and management errors but not criminal intent.
Joe Magliocca is on trial after being accused of lying on travel expense claims between October 2017 and December 2019.
In them he named politicians from across the country, including a Quebec cabinet minister, Ontario’s NDP leader and the mayor of Halifax.
Magliocca, the former councillor for Calgary’s Ward 2, was charged with fraud and breach of trust just days before the 2021 Alberta municipal election.
RCMP began an investigation in August 2020 after it was passed on by Calgary police.
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Concerns over the councillor’s spending were raised after an investigation uncovered he had spent double what other Calgary councillors had at the 2019 Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference in Quebec City; $6,400 over the course of the four-day trip.
Several Crown witnesses who either attended FCM conferences or Quebec’s Winter Carnival, testified that they didn’t know Magliocca and were not hosted by him for meals or drinks.
During his closing argument Friday defence lawyer Aryan Sadat said there wasn’t enough evidence to find his client guilty.
“There is a significant absence of evidence to suggest Mr. Magliocca knowingly misled anyone or intended to cause any deprivation,” he said.
“I respectfully urge this courtroom to recognize the insufficiency of the Crown’s case and find Mr. Magliocca not guilty on both counts.”
Sadat said Magliocca’s conduct was within established guidelines and any issues were the result of confusing city policies on reimbursement and mistakes by office administrators.
“There should be a distinction between administrative fault and criminal behaviour.”
The Crown was scheduled to give its argument Friday afternoon. The judge in the case has indicated he will reserve his decision.
© 2024 The Canadian Press