Trevor Greenway
Local Journalism Initiative
Christian Bordeleau says that Chartered Professional Accountant Pierre Cote stole his financial business from under his nose.
He and his lawyers spent the last nine months gathering evidence to take it back, and, on Aug. 1, bailiffs descended on a property located at 388 Hwy 105 in Chelsea – the site of Financial Evaluation Canada (F.E.C.) CPA – and seized office equipment, computers and data, which Bordeleau claims belong to him.
The court order forced CPA Cote, who was in charge of F.E.C. CPA, to hand over five laptops, usernames, passwords, combinations and keys and forbid him or his staff from accessing or destroying any documents or data on the computers.
Bordeleau is also claiming $1.6 million in damages for the alleged illegal use of a company truck, misappropriated funds, missing cash from his company bank account, missing revenue and the alleged falsification of Cote’s salary.
According to Bordeleau, when he was hired in 2019 by real estate training company MREX, business started coming in fast and furious, and he needed help processing invoices for several of his companies, including MREX, his construction company named RainBridge Construction and LeBronx Pizza in Chelsea.
He hired Cote for $72,000 and gave the CPA full power of attorney to handle all of his financial assets.
“I made him an offer at $72,000 a year, plus potential bonuses, and he accepted,” explains Bordeleau. “When he came on board, I was like, ‘Wow, everything’s going to be so perF.E.C.t.’ I have my own CPA; it’s going to be extremely well done. Everything’s going to be perF.E.C.t. I’m never going to hear [from] Revenue Quebec ever in my life.”
But, in the midst of a fraud allegation in which MREX accused Bordeleau of stealing $1.7 million from the company, Bordeleau alleges that Cote took all of his clients, accounts receivable, company cash, computers and other items and registered them under a new company name – F.E.C. Canada CPA. Bordeleau also supplied affidavits from former F.E.C. employees, who alleged something was amiss at the company.
Former employee Kamal Masoud wrote in an affidavit filed in court that, when Cote was hired in January of 2022, the work climate “changed dramatically.” They wrote that F.E.C.’s books “did not appear to be accurate.”
“Pierre did not perform his duties, namely did pay not source deductions or sales tax or prepare remittance forms for F.E.C. or the companies under our administration,” wrote Masoud in a signed affidavit. Masoud resigned in 2022, citing poor management under Cote’s direction. “Before resigning, I advised Christian that I had great concerns about the way the bookkeeping and general administration of F.E.C.’s affairs were being handled by Pierre and/or under his direction and control.”
Bordeleau says he was essentially locked out of his own business until Aug. 1 when a Quebec Superior Court order approved the seizure.
“It’s the office,” says Bordeleau, when asked what he got back. “It’s the office space – it’s the furniture, it’s my computer, it’s the data, it’s the account, it’s the bank account, it’s everything.”
Pierre Cote did not respond to the Low Down’s request for comment. None of these allegations have been proven in court.
Christian Bordeleau says gaining access to his financial books will help him clear his name in a $1.7 million fraud allegation.
The Chelsea businessman says that after a search and seizure on Aug. 1 led to him getting his F.E.C. Canada financial business back, he can now provide additional documents to support his case in the fraud charge, proving his salary was $278,000.
That’s the basis of a lawsuit filed against Bordeleau by MREX owners Nikolaï Guillemette-Ray and Nicolas Leclerc, as the two Quebec City business partners claim that Bordeleau’s salary was only $104,000 and that he stole $1.7 million from the company. He was fired by the company in 2022.
According to court records obtained by the Low Down, MREX alleges that Bordeleau paid himself and other companies more than $1.4 million between 2019 and 2022 in “unjustified payments” – based on his alleged $104,000 salary. But Bordeleau and his lawyers argue that the report is inaccurate. Bordeleau submitted as evidence a photo of an employment contract signed by MREX CEO Guillemette-Ray proving his $278,000 salary. Guillemette-Ray claimed in court that “this document is a forgery.”
However, in a 2024 cross-examination filed in court, lawyer Patrick Brunelle, who is part of Bordeleau’s legal team, asked Guillemette-Ray about the employment contract, who said he didn’t recall signing the document.
“Does this look like your signature?” pressed Brunelle.
“Yes, that looks like my signature,” responded Guillemette-Ray.
“Is it possible that you visited and signed this document there?” pressed Brunelle again, indicating whether he visited Bordeleau in person and signed the contract.
“Not to the best of my knowledge,” replied Guillemette-Ray. Further in cross-examination, Brunelle tried to determine whether Bordeleau’s alleged salary of $104,000 was gross or net pay. Guillemette-Ray, the CEO of a real estate company with millions in sales, admitted he couldn’t tell the difference.
“The salary of $104,000 indicated in paragraph 30. Is it gross or net in your opinion?” asked the lawyer.
“It’s $104,000,” replied Guillemette-Ray.
“Is that after deductions or before deductions?” questioned Brunelle.
“If someone says: ‘I earn $104,000,’ it’s $104,000,” replied Guillemette-Ray. He then asked the lawyer to define gross and net pay. After doing so, the CEO said, “I don’t even know what gross and net mean, honestly.”
Bordeleau’s legal team also submitted a letter from Guillemette-Ray, which they say “confirms Bordeleau’s salary at $278,000 gross per year.” They also argue that two payments approved by Guillemette-Ray “clearly indicate” that Bordeleau’s salary was $278,000. Bordeleau’s legal team has also submitted a handwritten note signed by Guillemette-Ray indicating that Bordeleau’s salary was $278,000. The note, which the Low Down has obtained, has “278k” written on it, along with the words, “Expenses, cell, car.” Guillemette-Ray’s signature appears to be scribbled on the bottom of the note.
A report by CPA and consultant Chris Mak, which reviewed MREX’s evidence to “support firing with cause,” found that the company’s report spreadsheet “inaccurately depicts due to/from the employee, which claims Bordeleau owes the company $1.017m.” The report notes a “stark contrast” between the MREX report and F.E.C. Canada’s report, which shows that MREX owes Bordeleau $20,000.
Bordeleau says now that he has received his financial documents back from Cote, he will be able to clear his name under the fraud charge. He’ll return to court sometime this fall to fight the allegations.
Both parties’ allegations have not been tested in court.