Just when I had thoughts of maybe moving to Canada! LOL. Let this be an eyeopener for all those of different cultures who seek to separate. #UnityisKey
source:star.com
A Toronto man has
filed a $225,000 lawsuit alleging racial profiling after a routine trip
to the bank led to him being arrested on suspicion of passing a
fraudulent cheque, according to a statement of claim filed with the
court.
Frantz St. Fleur, 38,
was attempting to deposit a $9,000 cheque at the Scotiabank location at
Scarborough Town Centre when the police showed up and arrested him,
based on information provided by bank staff, according to the statement
of claim.
The cheque was from a
refunded real estate deposit after a condo purchase fell through. The
cheque was valid, realtor Re/Max said in a statement to the Star.
“It was horrible. The
worst thing that ever happened to me. I’ve never been arrested (in) my
life. It was a Saturday morning; the bank was full and the mall also,”
St. Fleur told the Star. “Everybody was looking at me and nothing was
done quietly. Everybody saw everything that happened.”
In a statement to the Star, the bank called the treatment he received “unacceptable.”
“Customers are our No.
1 priority and are treated with the utmost respect. The treatment of
Mr. St. Fleur was unacceptable and we have apologized and made an
initial offer to reverse certain fees on his account and then offered an
additional goodwill gesture in the spring. We have also worked with our
employees to ensure that this does not happen again,” the bank said.
St.
Fleur, 38, a Haitian-born citizen of Canada, has filed a lawsuit
alleging racial profiling in connection with the arrest. The suit names
the Bank of Nova Scotia, or Scotiabank, the Toronto Police Services
Board and Re/Max Community Realty Inc. It claims more than $225,000 in
damages.
“I filed this suit
because I’m still looking for answers about why this happened. I banked
with them for almost 10 years — since 2005,” said St. Fleur.
“I have all my accounts with them. I’m looking for answers about exactly why they did what they did.”
The statement of
claim, filed in court on Oct. 17, contains allegations that are a part
of a civil lawsuit. The allegations have not been tested in court.
St. Fleur was issued a
$9,000 cheque by Re/Max in April 2014, according to the statement of
claim. The cheque was to return a deposit St. Fleur had paid towards a
condo, using funds he had withdrawn from his Scotiabank tax-free savings
account. The unit didn’t pass muster, and Re/Max returned the funds to
St. Fleur by cheque.
“I want people to
know. Everyone is equal in Canada … everyone is equal. With what
happened, I realized there is something that needs to be fixed. I want
everybody else to know,” St. Fleur told the Star.
“I’m not looking for
money, but I want everybody to know about what happened so that it never
happens to anybody else. There’s no other reason it happened. Because
I’m black. I’m black, and in the bank with a $9,000 cheque.”
In
an email to the Star, Scotiabank spokesman Andrew Chornenky wrote:
“Unfortunately, because this matter is before the courts we can’t
comment on the specifics.
“It is Scotiabank’s
policy to treat every customer fairly and with respect regardless of
race, national or ethnic origin, gender, colour, sexual orientation, or
religion.”
Scotiabank apologized
personally to St. Fleur in a letter sent shortly after the incident. It
offers to refund two years’ worth of banking fees to St. Fleur — which
he said totals about $100.
The bank did not confirm whether it has filed a statement of defence.
St. Fleur went to the
bank April 26, he says, on the way to a weekend shift at Co-Ex-Tec,
where he assembles auto parts. He had several accounts with Scotiabank,
including chequing, savings, a U.S. dollar account, a line of credit,
Visa card and tax-free savings.
After he presented the
cheque for deposit, a bank employee escorted him to her office,
according to the statement of claim. She offered St. Fleur investment
products, the claim says.
“I told her I was
going to work. She offered me business. She wanted to invest that money
for me. I said it’s a good idea to invest the money but I don’t have
time — just deposit it for now,” he told the Star.
St. Fleur said the
teller left and, soon after, police appeared to arrest him. Taken to the
nearby police station, he was questioned and released once police
determined the cheque was valid, according to the statement of claim.
“We are in the process
of putting together our statement of defence. It is not at all unusual
for lawsuit claims to fail in court,” police spokesman Mark Pugash wrote
in an email to the Star. “Unfortunately, the Toronto Star often
provides a platform for unproved claims but rarely, if ever, lets its
readers know when those claims are judged to be baseless.”
Re/Max’s statement
said it was first contacted by Toronto police about St. Fleur’s attempt
to cash the cheque, and phone records show the bank had never called the
real estate company.
“We were first made
aware of this issue by the Toronto police on the day of the incident.
When we learned about the issue, we responded to the inquiry in a timely
manner to clarify any concerns that were brought forward. We have
always taken the position that the cheque was valid,” said the
statement. It added that Re/Max’s legal team was speaking with St.
Fleur’s lawyer at CHEW Law Firm.
“We’ve gone through
every possible reason why they could think that the cheque Mr. St. Fleur
proffered was fraudulent, and there’s nothing — the cheque looks fine,”
said Paul Druxerman, who is representing St. Fleur. “The basis for that
would have been that he’s black. We couldn’t find any other reason why
they would suspect him of passing a fraudulent cheque.”
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