A 63-year-old man has pleaded guilty to defrauding four church parishes in northern New Brunswick where he used to work as a priest.
Yvon Doiron, originally of Paquetville, changed his plea to guilty of four counts of fraud totaling more than $116,000, said District 9 RCMP Cst. Jacques Drapeau.
Doiron, who now lives in Montreal, did not appear in the Campbellton provincial court Tuesday, said Drapeau. His lawyer entered the change of plea for him. The case had been scheduled for a three-week trial.
The church parishes involved are in Dalhousie, Charlo, Eel River Crossing and Dundee.
The incidents occurred between 1997 and 2003, said Drapeau.
A police investigation was launched in June 2006 after a concerned parishioner, who noticed something wrong with the accounting books, contacted the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bathurst, he said.
Doiron is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 30.
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Former N.B. priest pleads guilty to defrauding churches of $116,000
Winnipeg Free Press
By: The Canadian Press
Posted: 10/26/2011 8:42 AM
CAMPBELLTON, N.B. – A former New Brunswick priest has pleaded guilty to defrauding several parishes of more than $116,000.
Yvon Doiron, originally of Paquetville, N.B., appeared in Campbellton provincial court Tuesday.
The 63-year-old, who now lives in Montreal, pleaded guilty to four counts of defrauding church parishes in Dalhousie, Charlo, Eel River Crossing and Dundee.
The incidents occurred between 1997 and 2003 while Doiron was a priest at the parishes.
Doiron will be sentenced on Jan. 30.
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Man pleads guilty to defrauding church parishes, Campbellton, N.B.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police website
2011/10/26
On October 25, 2011, 63-year-old Yvon Doiron, originally of Paquetville, N.B., but currently living in Montreal, QC, appeared in Campbellton Provincial Court and pleaded guilty to four counts of fraud.
Doiron pleaded guilty to defrauding church parishes in Dalhousie, Charlo, Eel River Crossing and Dundee, N.B., of more than $116,000. The incidents occurred between 1997 and 2003, while Doiron was working as a priest at the parishes. A police investigation was launched in June 2006.
Yvon Doiron is scheduled to appear in court next on January 30, 2012 for sentencing.