Shane Magee· CBC News· Posted: Feb 20, 2020 12:20 PM AT

 

 

 

Daniel Bard was a vice-president of investment attraction for 3+ Corporation between 2016 and 2018. Allegations of wrongdoing arose last fall, triggering the economic development agency to order a third-party investigation. (3+/Facebook)

 

An outside investigation found no evidence that alleged wrongdoing by Daniel Bard was known or authorized by other staff of a Moncton-based economic development agency, but the report questions the thoroughness of the agency's hiring process.

Bard was vice-president of investment attraction for 3+ Corporation between 2016 and February 2018. The investigation was ordered by 3+ last fall after allegations of wrongdoing arose about Bard.

Bard is being accused by several business owners and individuals of receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in administrative and brokerage fees while working with 3+, but failing to deliver on promises and then vanishing. The RCMP are investigating him for breach of trust.

When the allegations became public, 3+ CEO Susy Campos ordered an outside investigation that was conducted by Fredericton lawyer Joël Michaud.

"There is no evidence supporting an allegation that Bard was acting as an authorized representative of the Corporation while engaging in the impugned activities," Michaud wrote in the 13-page report released Thursday.

"His activities were in no way sanctioned or approved by the Corporation."


Joël Michaud was hired to carry out the external investigation. (CBC)


The agency's website says the role of 3+ is to promote the greater Moncton region, attract investment and help existing businesses expand. It receives more than $500,000 in annual funding from the municipalities of Moncton, Dieppe and Riverview.

Moncton lawyer Christian Michaud represents multiple parties who say they have lost money to Daniel Bard. He estimates their combined losses at between $2 million and $5 million.

Christian Michaud said he wanted 3+ held responsible given it should have known there was at least one lawsuit against Bard at the time he was hired.

Bard was hired in July 2016.

"While the evidence is somewhat disputed on the hiring process, very few checks were performed prior to offering Bard a position," Joël Michaud wrote in the report.

Christian Michaud represents some of Bard's alleged victims. (CBC)


The former CEO recalled reviewing a resume submitted by Bard, however no resumé was found in the 3+ records, the report states. The only outside information came from a 3+ employee who said Bard was an "enthusiastic entrepreneur and a nice person," the report states.

"The former CEO states that he and the employee researched Bard on the internet but found nothing particularly useful, and more importantly, nothing that might raise concerns," the report states.

Christian Michaud said Thursday that the report backs his view the organization could have done more to look into Bard's background.

"I hope that they'll learn from it, and in the future do proper review of client people they're looking at hiring," Christian Michaud said.

When Bard was hired he signed an agreement that he wouldn't engage in other employment, including consulting, that could conflict with his obligations to 3+.
Bard claimed he had international contacts in banking and in other industries that would help him attract business to Moncton as well as ongoing relationships with several companies. He told 3+ that the goal was to bring these clients to 3+ "on his own schedule," the report states.

The report says the former 3+ CEO had a discussion with Bard about "moonlighting." The former CEO, who isn't named in the report, says his understanding was that Bard's company, VM Venture Management Corp., and Bard would cease all activities but Bard would keep his contacts and bring them to 3+.

But the report says Bard continued his work outside of 3+.

Saly and Clinton Davis, who owned the Glamour Secrets salon in Dieppe's CF Champlain mall, told CBC that after a few years in business, the store was just about to start turning a profit. But the salon's franchise agreement was coming to an end. Wondering if they should make other investments, they approached 3+ for advice in July 2017.
  

Clinton and Saly Davis went to police in August about Daniel Bard. (Gabrielle Fahmy/CBC)


The report states they were assigned to Bard, who met with the couple but didn't seem interested in their plans to invest in a diner. Instead, he suggested he could find a restaurant for them to buy and later raised the idea of becoming part of a "huge project" he was working on.

He told them he was a volunteer at 3+ but had many businesses, according to the report.
Bard asked the couple for money for a proposal to help them open their own line of salons, a beauty school and a beauty products warehouse for an online store.

But they had to pay VM Venture Management Corp. $25,000 US as a brokerage fee and to secure them a loan of $8 million to $13 million to get the project started.
They gave Bard the money in September 2017. But the loan didn't materialize and they had difficulty meeting Bard, they told CBC last year.

Michaud's report says the money never went into 3+ accounts. The funds promised never appeared and a cheque Bard wrote to the couple bounced. They reported Bard to RCMP.

RCMP Cpl. Jullie Rogers-Marsh told Radio-Canada on Thursday the force is continuing its investigation, though no charges have been laid. She said there's no timeline for the criminal investigation.

"The investigation can be very complex and it does take time to look at everything," Rogers-Marsh said. "As soon as we're able to provide an update, we will."

The report concludes that "Bard appears to have abused his position to enrich himself and defraud the clients of the [3+] Corporation."
 

Susy Campos, the current CEO of 3+, says the unethical behavior by one individual does not represent how the agency operates. (CBC)


"We sincerely regret that anyone was impacted by the actions of this former employee," Campos said in a news release Thursday. "We will continue to work hard to instill the confidence of our clients and partners."

The news release says the corporation will "increase the rigour of the hiring process" and make changes to its policies.

It will ensure a code of conduct is signed by all employees and reviewed annually, "strengthen" its conflict of interest policy to require employees get written approval for work outside 3+, develop a whistle-blower policy and review a policy that allowed employees to use their own mobile devices for work.


 





Commenting is now closed for this story.






David Amos
Who believes this BS?

Survey Says?

















David Amos
Surprise Surprise Surprise  















Shawn Tabor
Somebody hired him, he had to have people speak good things of him, almost like the interview was on an island, down in the southern part of this rock or planet. This shows a lot. Keep digging, if you dare. LOL