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Verdun suspends 3 senior officials over alleged irregularities

Verdun metro station in Montreal. Francis Vachon/The Canadian Press

MONTREAL – Three senior Borough of Verdun civil servants, including a manager and two urban planning officials, have been suspended with pay pending an investigation into “serious irregularities.”

Verdun mayor Jean-François Parenteau said in a statement that decisive action was necessary after having read a confidential report that flagged serious administrative irregularities in the borough.

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“Given the alleged irregularities . . . I took the decision to suspend three officials during the time the investigation is being carried out,” he said.

“These suspensions are intended to ensure the total integrity of the investigation and may be temporary or lead to reprimands or dismissals.”

Parenteau also announced a major internal administrative reform to help “management raise the ethical standards of our administration.”

It would focus on the process of issuing building permits, as well as contract management and ethics.

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The confidential report is now in the hands of Quebec’s anti-corruption squad, the Unité permanente anti-corruption (UPAC), and its contents have been embargoed.

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