The RCMP is alleging that Sen. Pamela Wallin defrauded the Senate and committed breach of trust by filing inappropriate expense claims, and that perceived irregularities over her expenses were flagged several times since 2009.
The allegations are outlined in court documents seeking to obtain evidence as part of the Mountiesâ ongoing investigation into Wallinâs expenses.
Among other materials, RCMP investigators are asking for various versions of Wallinâs electronic calendar from 2009 to 2013, her travel expense forms and receipts, her credit card billing statements and Senate attendance records.
None of the allegations in the documents have been tested or proven in court. Wallin has not been criminally charged.
In a request to obtain a production order, RCMP Const. Michael Johnson writes that the Senateâs director of finance, Nicole Proulx, told investigators that there have been issues with Wallinâs expenses since 2009.
Proulx said she and the Senate clerk spoke with Wallin about her expense claims on several occasions. She said the âwhole issueâ centred on claims related to Wallinâs travel to Toronto, where the senator owned a condo and frequently stopped en route to Saskatchewan or Ottawa.
On June 4, 2009, for example, Wallin flew from Ottawa to Toronto and claimed the expense as âSenate business.â According to the court filings, Wallin later said that she was attending an awards gala.
The gala started at 5:30 p.m. that day, but Wallinâs flight did not land in Toronto until after 9:05 p.m., according to the document.
A Deloitte audit had flagged $121,348 in inappropriate travel expenses claimed by Wallin, and the Senate committee later determined she owed another $17,621, bringing her total tab to $138,969. Wallin has since repaid those expenses.
Wallin has claimed that her primary residence is in Wadena, Sask., but the Deloitte review found that her income tax return and health card âdid not match the primary residence,â according to Johnsonâs court filing.
According to the filing, Deloitte auditors also noted that entries in three versions of Wallinâs Microsoft Outlook calendar had been changed more than 391 times.
In 2010, some of Wallinâs expense claims were rejected, but she âtook issueâ with that and complained to the Senateâs internal economy steering committee. The committee ultimately sided with Wallin and her claims were paid.
Proulx told investigators that she spoke âmore seriouslyâ with Wallin in January 2012 about her âtravel irregularities,â including the high cost of her car services and frequent stopovers in Toronto.
Both a Senate finance clerk and a former Wallin staffer raised issues about the Senatorâs spending in 2011 and 2012.
A letter from the former staffer prompted a second, more comprehensive internal review of Wallinâs expenses, according to the court documents. The staffer had made âserious allegationsâ about Wallinâs claims and bookkeeping, itâs alleged.
Investigators also interviewed Sen. Marjory LeBreton, then the government leader in the Senate, who said she does not believe that Wallin has committed any criminal offence or tried to scam the system.
However, âSenator LeBreton feels that Senator Wallin has a sense of entitlement,â the court filing states.
The Senate is currently debating whether to suspend Wallin, along with Senators Mike Duffy and Patrick Brazeau, whose expenses are also being investigated by the RCMP.
The Mounties are also investigating former Liberal Sen. Mac Harbâs living and housing expenses. Harb resigned from the Senate in August.
Wallin has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. She has accused the Senate internal committee of forming a âlynch mobâ and said that LeBreton and Sen. Carolyn Stewart Olsen have âpersonal vendettasâ against her.
She has also said that the Senate audit process was âfundamentally flawedâ and unfair.
Court Documents - Information to Obtain a Production Orders:
