Whitby / Crime

Five Whitby residents fined for provincial tax evasion

Ontario's latest tax court bulletin names five Whitby residents among 42 convicted under provincial tax statutes, fined $2,550 to $4,000 for false statements on land transfer tax refund claims.

By Daily Durham News

Oct 20, 2026, 12:03 p.m. ET1 min read

Ontario Legislative Building at Queen's Park, Toronto; no people visible. — The Ontario Legislative Building at Queen's Park. (DXR / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0) · Credit: DXR, via Wikimedia Commons

Five Whitby residents were among 42 people and corporations convicted under Ontario's key provincial tax statutes in a court bulletin the Ministry of Finance released on October 19, 2026. The bulletin lists convictions under the Retail Sales Tax Act, the Land Transfer Tax Act and the Employer Health Tax Act.

The five Whitby residents were each convicted of making a false statement in an application for a refund under the Land Transfer Tax Act. Tenzin Gyurmey, Hetal Tanmay Thakkar and Sailujun Balachandran were sentenced in Whitby on July 15, 2026, and each fined $4,000. Damion Braham and Sejla Abdic were sentenced in Whitby on June 10, 2026, and each fined $2,550, according to the ministry's court bulletin.

Ontario says recent convictions highlight the consequences of evading provincial tax laws and that its enforcement efforts help ensure a level playing field for businesses and taxpayers across the province.

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