Five years after Madam Justice Denise Bellamy produced a scathing report on the City of Toronto’s MFP computer leasing scandal, police have concluded that there are "no reasonable grounds" for criminal charges.
In a press release, the Ontario Provincial Police announced it had finished its comprehensive investigation, stemming from two inquiries into the city’s $43-million contract with MFP Financial Services that swelled to $101.7-million without council’s approval. The dealings date back to the late 1990s.
In 2005, city council voted to have an outside police force look into charges contained with the Bellamy report, including claims former budget chief Tom Jakobek accepted a $25,000 bribe from MFP salesman Dash Domi.
Some councillors said they were not surprised by the findings, while others expressed shock. "I read the Bellamy report cover to cover and I can’t possibly see how criminal charges could not be laid to some of the participants," said Councillor Howard Moscoe. The police probe sifted through 800,000 pages of documents form the Toronto Computer Leasing Inquiry and the Toronto External Contracts Inquiry.
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