Former Sandy Bay Child and Family Services head sued by Winnipeg construction company
CBC
A man who was fired from his job as the head of Sandy Bay Child and Family Services for alleged financial irregularities is now being sued by the construction company he hired to build the welfare agency's head office.
The suit filed by Winnipeg-based Contera Construction alleges a $1.2-million payment discrepancy.
The company is suing Richard De La Ronde, the former executive director of Sandy Bay CFS, and his company Radka.
Contera alleges it wasn't paid everything it was owed before De La Ronde was fired and the child welfare agency ended the lease agreement.
In 2018, Contera Construction had entered into a contract with De La Ronde, through his company Radka, for $2.7 million to build the new CFS head office, according to a statement of claim filed with Manitoba Court of Queen's Bench on May 3.
The cost went up in November of that year when change orders were made.
In making the agreement, the construction company relied on De La Ronde's assertion that he maintained a legal interest in the land where the office would be built, the claim alleges.
It says De La Ronde represented the land to Contera as being under his "exclusive control and authority" within Sandy Bay First Nation — about 130 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, on the western shore of Lake Manitoba — by virtue of a 20-year land lease.
In June 2021, De La Ronde was no longer executive director of Sandy Bay CFS and wrongfully terminated the contract with Contera, with an unpaid amount of about $1.2 million, the claim alleges.
It says De La Ronde made an agreement to transfer ownership of the office building and the land leases to Contera to pay the amount owing under the construction contract.
"Contera discovered that Radka and/or De La Ronde did not have the legal authority to transfer the land leases with Sandy Bay First Nation and therefore was unable to transfer the property to Contera as agreed and in breach of the purchase agreement," the claim says.
"De La Ronde misrepresented the nature of his interest in the lands on which the head office was situated, which caused loss and damage to Contera."
De La Ronde paid about 57 per cent of the cost of the building through Radka, but payments stopped abruptly before construction was completed.
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