The accused pleaded guilty to five counts of counselling misrepresentation and admitted the remaining allegations arising from a lengthy scheme arranging sham marriages to obtain permanent residence for foreign nationals.
The court held that the offences were grave, commercially motivated, and struck at the integrity of the Canadian immigration system, making denunciation and general deterrence the paramount sentencing objectives.
After weighing early guilty pleas, genuine remorse, extensive voluntary community service, and personal health circumstances, the court fixed a sentence of two years less one day.
Applying the conditional sentence principles, the court concluded that a community-based custodial sentence with punitive house arrest conditions would still meet the requirements of denunciation and deterrence.
