Former director of police storefront charged with fraud

CITY POLICE NEWS RELEASE

********************* Mr. James McGinn, former executive director Community Operated Police Storefront (COPS) charged

Early in 2004 information came to the attention of the Sault Ste. Marie Police Service that brought into question the allocation of certain grant monies received by the Community Operated Police Storefront (COPS).

The Sault Ste. Marie police service, as one founding agency of the storefront operation and whose members continued to take on various board responsibilities, chose appropriately to defer the investigation to an external police agency.

The Greater Sudbury Police Service took carriage of this investigation and a report was furnished to the Sault Ste. Marie Police Service, in February of this year, setting out their findings.

As a result Mr James McGinn [shown] of 18 Hawthorne Avenue Sault Ste. Marie and former executive director of the storefront operation, has been charged with one count of fraud over five thousand dollars and one count of fraud under five thousand dollars.

Additionally Mr. McGinn had been charged with one count of theft over five thousand dollars and one count of theft under five thousand dollars.

The Community Operated Police Storefront which opened its doors in July of 1995 and most recently operated out of 514 Queen Street East here in Sault Ste. Marie ceased operations in May of 2004.

Mr. McGinn, who will make his first court appearance here in Sault Ste. Marie on the 04th of April 2005 at 9 a.m., was brought on as the executive director at the time of incorporation in 1998 and remained in this position up until early 2004. *********************