Sudbury City Councillor Bill Leduc headed to court for allegedly breaking campaign finance rules

Sudbury, Ont. Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc will be going to court for "apparent campaign finance contraventions" under the Municipal Elections Act.

The city's Election Compliance Audit Committee voted Wednesday to start legal proceedings against Leduc following conclusions from a financial audit by KPMG related to his 2022 election campaign finances.

If found guilty, Leduc could be forced to forfeit his seat on council and would not be eligible to be elected or appointed to any municipal office until after the next regular election.

The KPMG audit, published in May, noted several instances where Leduc was alleged to have contravened the Municipal Elections Act.

In one instance, auditors found that Leduc received a $500 cheque from Norm Bouffard, which would have been $475 more than the permitted cash contribution limit for a municipal campaign.

In another instance, they discovered Leduc incurred about $307 in campaign expenses that were not paid from his campaign bank account, in contravention to campaign law.

A third instance showed that Leduc received three bank drafts – for $1,000 each – that were purchased by Anna Maria Villano. The drafts also included the names Mike Villano and Frank Villano.

But it's against municipal campaign law to donate money on behalf of someone else.

Leduc says the three had a joint bank account, and has said he could provide an affidavit when the matter goes to court.

"To this day I still believe I haven't contravened anything on this," Leduc said during the committee hearing on Wednesday.

After the committee made its decision to pursue legal proceedings, Leduc refused to speak with CBC News.

Grandparents Day event

The KPMG audit also outlined expenses Leduc had during a Grandparents Day event that occurred during the 2022 election campaign.

At that event Leduc spent $445 on pizza for attendees and volunteers, $550 on chicken wings, $300 on live music, various prizes for attendees and $932 on horse and buggy rides. Footage from the event was also later used in a campaign video.

Anastasia Rioux, who lives in Leduc's ward, has maintained that the money he spent at that event was part of his campaign, but Leduc has said otherwise.

"The event was not a campaign event. The event was a public event," his lawyer Tim Harmar told the committee on Wednesday.

The KPMG audit, though, says that "Leduc appears to have exceeded the general spending limit by up to approximately $2,938" through the event.

Rioux told CBC News she was "elated" Leduc would be facing legal proceedings over his alleged campaign finance contraventions.

"The event took place in 2022, so it's been a long time coming," she said.

"I'm glad, not that it's wrapped up today, but that we're moving forward to legal proceedings. I do believe in justice."

Rioux says she believes Leduc unfairly took advantage of his position as an incumbent in the 2022 municipal election with the Grandparents Day event.

She says he and others were wearing campaign shirts at the event, and his car with campaign promotions on it was parked outside the venue's entrance.

In its report KPMG notes Leduc hired a company called SocialRise, which produced a video for his campaign using footage from the Grandparents Day event.

Peter McMullen, chair of the city's Election Compliance Audit Committee, says the city clerk will retain an independent prosecutor to carry the case forward.

The case will be heard through the Provincial Offences Court, which McMullen says should result in a speedier resolution than Superior Court.