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Britannia Elementary Community School in East Vancouver. Photo by Arlen Redekop /PNG
The former principal of a small east Vancouver elementary school is on trial for allegedly stealing more than $170,000 in funds, some of which were intended to help families of needy students.
Tricia Lowe, also known as Tricia Rooney, was named in a civil lawsuit filed by the Vancouver school board over alleged thefts of gift cards, district funding and charitable gifts to the school while she was at the helm from 2017 to 2020.
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Britannia Elementary — which serves about 200 students, about half of whom are local residents and some from families struggling to make ends meet — operates through a combination of district funding and fundraising efforts.
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Lowe was responsible for making purchases and organizing fundraising on behalf of the school and was responsible for preparing periodic financial reports to the board.
Beginning in late 2017, the lawsuit alleges Lowe began using board-issued purchase cards intended for school expenses for personal use.
She also tries to pay off personal creditor with purchase cards, writes and cashes personal checks to herself,; kept gift cards donated to the school for needy students and their families, booked and canceled school events and held refunds, and collected money from events like a summer barbecue fundraiser for its own use.
It alleges that Lowe failed to file timely financial statements to hide her abuses.
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The school board claims it continued to provide cards for Low to make up the shortfall because fundraising money was going to the principal instead of school programs and extracurricular activities.
The board says it met with Low in October 2019 about an unexplained deficit and was told it was caused by a delay in receiving a grant from the province. When the shortfall was later noted in a routine budget report, Lowe was asked and provided no documentation to justify it, the suit alleges.
The board sued for restitution of stolen funds in the amount of $39,281.88 in unauthorized spending on purchase cards, $13,288.50 in debited gift cards, $48,832.39 in fraudulently issued checks, $51,568.60 in funds from restricted accounts and $17,480 in improperly claimed field trip expenses.
The total amount, $170,451.37, is sought along with special damages, punitive and exemplary damages, costs and interest.
There was no response to the lawsuit, which was filed last Friday in British Columbia Supreme Court. The claims have not been tested in court.
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