Former Lake Louise resort CFO sent to prison, fined total of $775K after convictions for fraud, tax evasion

The former CFO of the Lake Louise Ski Resort was handed a year in jail and a $106,000 fine this week for failing to pay taxes on money he embezzled from the resort.

The penalties come just weeks after Derek Nicholas Kwasney, 54, was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison and a $669,000 fine for a fraud conviction.

Court records show the tax evasion and embezzlement took place between Jan. 1, 2015 and March 23, 2017, the date Kwasney filed his 2016 taxes.

Kwasney worked for the Lake Louise Ski Resort (LLSR) at its Calgary-based head office beginning in 2008. He was fired in 2016. 

Embezzlement 3 ways 

Details of Kwasney's offences come from an agreed statement of facts (ASF) filed at the Calgary courthouse as part of his guilty plea to two charges of embezzlement under the Income Tax Act.

The admitted facts also reveal the details of Kwasney's criminal conviction for fraud.

Kwasney stole from the resort in three different ways, according to the ASF.

On 16 different occasions, Kwasney signed LLSR cheques, making them payable to his own personal credit card and bank accounts. The total amount of misappropriated funds from that method was $265,000, according to the ASF.

Double dipping 

Kwasney also claimed a vehicle allowance of $700/month in his expense reports in 2015 and 2016 when he was already receiving the exact same allowance on his statement of earnings.

The total amount of that method of fraud was just over $13,000.

Finally, Kwasney stole more than $73,000 from Lake Louise Ski Resort by arranging for his employer to pay his salary twice — through direct deposits to two different bank accounts.

In filing his taxes for 2015 and 2016, Kwasney did not report the earnings he received through his misappropriation of resort funds. 

"Kwasney knew he was required to report all of his income, including all income misappropriated from LLSR," reads the ASF. 

Appeal filed 

In September, Kwasney pleaded guilty to two counts of tax evasion. 

This week, Justice Marlene Graham sentenced Kwasney to a year in jail and a $106,000 fine, which equals the amount of income tax he evaded. 

Last month in Canmore, Justice Gord Wong handed Kwasney a four-and-a-half year prison term on top of a $669,000 fine and restitution order. 

Court records show Kwasney has filed an appeal on his criminal case which is set to be heard in 2025.

Kwasney's standing as a member of the Chartered Professional Accountants of Alberta has been suspended since June 9, 2022.