A Manitoba court has ruled in favour of the City of Winnipeg’s civil claim that former chief administrative officer Phil Sheegl accepted a bribe and breached his duty as a city officer by accepting $327,000 from the contractor who built the city’s police headquarters.
A Manitoba court has ruled in favour of the City of Winnipeg’s civil claim that former chief administrative officer Phil Sheegl accepted a bribe and breached his duty as a city officer by accepting $327,000 from the contractor who built the city’s police headquarters.
In a 129-page decision issued Tuesday, Chief Justice Glenn Joyal of the Court of Queen’s Bench granted the city’s request for a summary judgment against Sheegl and his co-defendants under the torts of bribery and breach of fiduciary duty.
The city claimed Sheegl made up a land deal in Arizona with police headquarters contractor Armik Babakhanians of Caspian Construction.
The deal was fabricated to cover up a $327,200 payment Babakhanians made to Sheegl, the city alleged.
The city sought repayment of the $327,200, as well as $250,000 in severance paid to Sheegl when he left the city, along with $100,000 in punitive costs and legal costs.
Joyal awarded the city the severance, punitive and legal costs, and may yet award the city the $327,200, pending further legal submissions.
CBC News has sought comment from Sheegl and Babakhanians.
More to come
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bartley Kives joined CBC Manitoba in 2016. Prior to that, he spent three years at the Winnipeg Sun and 18 at the Winnipeg Free Press, writing about politics, music, food and outdoor recreation. He’s the author of the Canadian bestseller A Daytripper’s Guide to Manitoba: Exploring Canada’s Undiscovered Province and co-author of both Stuck in the Middle: Dissenting Views of Winnipeg and Stuck In The Middle 2: Defining Views of Manitoba.
A Manitoba court has ruled in favour of the City of Winnipeg’s civil claim that former chief administrative officer Phil Sheegl accepted a bribe and breached his duty as a city officer by accepting $327,000 from the contractor who built the city’s police headquarters.A Manitoba court has ruled in favour of the city’s claim against former chief administrative officer Phil Sheegl. (CBC)A Manitoba court has ruled in favour of the City of Winnipeg’s civil claim that former chief administrative officer Phil Sheegl accepted a bribe and breached his duty as a city officer by accepting $327,000 from the contractor who built the city’s police headquarters. In a 129-page decision issued Tuesday, Chief Justice Glenn Joyal of the Court of Queen’s Bench granted the city’s request for a summary judgment against Sheegl and his co-defendants under the torts of bribery and breach of fiduciary duty. The city claimed Sheegl made up a land deal in Arizona with police headquarters contractor Armik Babakhanians of Caspian Construction. The deal was fabricated to cover up a $327,200 payment Babakhanians made to Sheegl, the city alleged. The city sought repayment of the $327,200, as well as $250,000 in severance paid to Sheegl when he left the city, along with $100,000 in punitive costs and legal costs. Joyal awarded the city the severance, punitive and legal costs, and may yet award the city the $327,200, pending further legal submissions. CBC News has sought comment from Sheegl and Babakhanians. More to comeABOUT THE AUTHORBartley Kives joined CBC Manitoba in 2016. Prior to that, he spent three years at the Winnipeg Sun and 18 at the Winnipeg Free Press, writing about politics, music, food and outdoor recreation. He’s the author of the Canadian bestseller A Daytripper’s Guide to Manitoba: Exploring Canada’s Undiscovered Province and co-author of both Stuck in the Middle: Dissenting Views of Winnipeg and Stuck In The Middle 2: Defining Views of Manitoba.