Image Credit: ADOBE STOCK
March 01, 2021 - 6:00 PM
A Kamloops golf pro who bilked his employer for more than $40,000 to fund a gambling habit will be back in court next month to address charges of breaching the conditions of his 18-month house arrest.
In October 2020, Chris Power pleaded guilty in Kamloops provincial court to a dozen fraud-related charges stemming from a series of interactions he had with members while working as the head pro at Rivershore Estates and Golf Links in 2016 and 2017.
According to court documents, Powers allegedly breached his conditional sentence order twice — once on Dec. 8, 2020, and again on Jan. 15, 2021. He was arrested by Kamloops RCMP on Feb. 18 and released.
Power’s next court date is set for March 11 to consult legal counsel.
Last October, Kamloops provincial court Judge Raymond Phillips agreed to a joint submission for an 18-month conditional sentence order for Power, which has him living under house arrest for that time period. He was also ordered to repay $40,664 to Rivershore to cover its losses stemming from his offences.
Power’s scheme was unsophisticated — he would offer memberships or golf clubs for sale and pocket the cash, rather than give it to his employer. The value of the transactions ranged from $600 to more than $7,300, but Rivershore honoured all purchases — even when Power did not.
Power blamed his crimes on a sports gambling addiction.
At the time of his sentencing in October, court heard Power was unemployed and living on the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), but was looking for work and hadn’t gambled for in recent months.
— This story was originally published by Kamloops This Week.
News from © iNFOnews, 2021