Edinga Yvan Othniel, 19, pleaded guilty on Monday May 6 at the Valleyfield courthouse to a charge of fraud exceeding $5,000. According to information disclosed before Judge Joey Dubois, the accused was working at the Dépanneur Couche-Tard in Vaudreuil-Dorion when he committed his crime.

Represented in court by Me. Noah Meilleur, stole a total of $10,862 from his former employer between July 23 and September 3, 2023.

The evidence presented to the Court shows that, during this period, Mr. Othniel defrauded the business using prepaid credit cards that were on sale on the premises. His actions were captured on the convenience store's surveillance cameras.

The accused purchased the cards by indicating on the cash register that they were paid for, but this was not the case. He allegedly paid certain amounts on these false purchases, but the bulk of the transaction amount remained unpaid.

“There is a particular context to the commission of this offence. My client was under external pressure at the time of the crime. He had to deal with a difficult family situation, in addition to being intimidated and threatened by a group of young people he knew who frequented the convenience store,” explained Me. Meilleur.

Faced with these arguments from the defense and the accused's guilty plea, Judge Joey Dubois found the latter guilty of fraud exceeding $5,000. He ordered that a pre-sentence report be prepared in order to get to know the accused better.

“This document will allow me to have a better overview of your current life, but also of the context in which you were evolving at the time of the crime. The charge you face is very serious. The report will also measure your risk of recidivism, a factor I will take into account when sentencing in your case", the magistrate told the accused.

Edinga Yvan Othniel's case will return to court on August 12.