The administrator of the Groupe Financier Beaudin Inc., has plead guilty to charges of enabling 40 customers to avoid paying $225,000 of taxes for the 1994, 1995, and 1996 tax years. As financial planner, Benoit Beaudin convinced some customers to claim a total of $640,594 in false business investment losses, says the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency. The court fined Beaudin $225,000.

Beaudin helped forge and circulate false share certificates, false promissory notes, and false contracts. These documents were used to support the false deductible losses, offered to customers in exchange for a commission of 30% of the false losses.

Beaudin also asked another supplier of fiscal losses to issue false documents allowing customers to claim $259,407 of business losses for the 1996 tax year. The CCRA reassessed the taxpayers who claimed the false investment and business losses, and added administrative penalties.