Sanjay Madan was a former Indian bureaucrat who was involved in a massive fraud scheme in Canada. He has been sentenced to ten years in prison for embezzling $47.4 million from the Ontario government. As part of his sentence, Madan has agreed to pay back $30 million immediately and the remaining amount over the next 15 years.
The fraud was carried out during the pandemic when Madan diverted over 43,000 COVID support payments into 2,841 bank accounts under his name, resulting in a $10.8 million loss to the fund. The investigation into the pandemic funds fraud uncovered a larger scheme that spanned nine years, during which Madan received profits of $36.6 million.
Madan's wife, Shalini Madan, and two adult sons, Chinmaya Madan and Ujjawal Madan, were also being investigated in connection with the fraud. However, all three of them submitted affidavits denying any knowledge of Madan's alleged schemes.
In addition to the pandemic funds fraud, Madan is believed to have committed other fraudulent activities. One of these was holding an Indian passport even after obtaining Canadian citizenship, which is a crime in India to hold dual citizenship. It is not yet clear if Madan will face any additional charges related to these other alleged fraudulent activities.
