Immigration fraud leads to jail sentence

June 11, 2018　　　 　　　　　　　　　　 Mississauga, Ontario　　　　　　　　　　　　　 Canada Border Services Agency

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) announced today that on May 29, 2018,　Ms. Angela Codina of the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area, was sentenced to seven years in prison for immigration fraud. The sentence includes two years for time served in pre-trial custody. In addition to the period of incarceration, Ms. Codina was ordered to pay $30,200 in restitution to four of her victims.

Ms. Codina, who was disbarred by the Law Society of Upper Canada in 2002, was convicted of immigration fraud by a jury in the Superior Court of Justice on November 22, 2017.　She was found guilty on four counts of‎ "Advise for Consideration without Authorization" contrary to sub-se‎ction 91(1)‎ of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) and one count of "Counsel Misrepresentation" contrary to section 126 of the IRPA.

This conviction is the result of an extensive investigation by the Criminal Investigations Section of the CBSA’s Greater Toronto Area Region, which began in 2011 after numerous victims reported fraud perpetrated by Ms. Codina.

Section 91 of the IRPA is designed to protect victims of immigration fraud by making it a criminal offense to provide immigration advice for a fee unless the provider is a lawyer licensed to practice law by a provincial licensing body, or an immigration consultant licensed by the Immigration Consultants of Canada Regulatory Council.

Ms. Codina was one of the first offenders charged by the CBSA under the provisions of sub-section 91(1) of the IRPA.