A Halifax couple will pay a steep price for failing to declare more than $193,000 worth of high-end jewelry, clothing and leather goods they purchased abroad over a four-year period.
Carl Albert Launt, 47, and Michelle Suzanne Ferguson, 48, pleaded guilty in May to two Customs Act charges — making false statements and failing to report imported goods.
Judge Dan MacRury accepted a joint sentencing recommendation from lawyers Friday in Dartmouth provincial court and fined the couple $43,780.
Launt and Ferguson also face a civil penalty imposed by the Canada Border Services Agency equal to 30 per cent of the value of the undeclared goods, which works out to about $58,000.
Had the couple declared the items at the border, they would have paid $49,633 in duties and taxes.
“Quite frankly, if you can afford to pay for those luxury items, you can afford to pay the tax,” Mac-Rury said.
“I accept that you are remorseful for your actions. But a message has to go out to you and to others that you have to fulfil the obligations that all Canadians have to fulfil. When they come into the country, they have to pay the duty on these goods.
“Being motivated by greed and vanity doesn’t act as a defence.”
The couple caught the attention of the border
agency on Sept. 15, 2016, when an officer in Mirabel, Que., inspected a FedEx package from the Bahamas.
The package was addressed to Launt and contained empty boxes for two luxury Swiss watches (Hublot and Chopard), certificates of authenticity and receipts.
The receipts were dated Sept. 11, 2016, and were for a total purchase of $35,000 Bahamian, or$45,615 Canadian.
The case was referred to a criminal investigator at the border agency’s Halifax office in April 2017.
Investigator Blair MacDonald determined Launt and Ferguson returned to Canada from the Bahamas on Sept. 12, 2016 but only declared about $1,100 in goods.
MacDonald got a production order to examine the couple’s credit card records, which revealed they bought more than $193,000 worth of unreported goods while travelling outside Canada between 2013 and 2017.
The purchases were made at exclusive stores such as Louis Vuitton, Saks Fifth Avenue, John Varvatos, Neiman Marcus, DK Gems, Chopard and The Vault.
“These were very expensive luxury goods that were purchased and not declared,” Crown attorney Mark Donohue told the court.
Donohue said border agency records show that between 2004 and 2017, Launt travelled outside Canada 53 times and Ferguson 57 times.
The charges only involve their trips between 2013 and 2017. “This behaviour was ongoing before this period,” Donohue said.
The only items seized in the investigation were the two watches bought in the Bahamas.
“If they want those items back, they’ll have to pay the forfeiture amount up front,” Donohue said.
Defence lawyer Geoff Franklin said Launt and Ferguson have been married for 11 years and areboth businesspeople.
Launt is president and CEO of Advantage Wireless, which bills itself as Atlantic Canada’s premier provider of wireless solutions for businesses.
“They’ve acknowledged their actions,” Franklin said of his clients. “They’ve taken responsibility.They co-operated with investigators and entered early guilty pleas.
“There’s no question that this has been something of a wake-up call for them. They’re certainly embarrassed by their actions.”
The judge gave Launt and Ferguson two years to pay the court fine of $43,780.
“These amounts have to be paid,” MacRury said. “If they’re not paid, there will be consequences.
“I hope you’ve learned that in the future when you cross the border, you have to be honest. It’s pretty simple. Everyone else is required to do it, and so are you.”
The Crown withdrew charges of smuggling and evading payment of duties.