Ottawa paramedic charged with forging COVID-19 vaccination documents
An Ottawa paramedic charged with using a fraudulent COVID-19 vaccine certificate in order to keep his job has been fired from the service.
Police say the man obtained his certificate by submitting forged documents and attesting he had received two vaccination doses from a provincial vaccine clinic.
The city of Ottawa informed police about the man’s fraudulent certificate last Thursday.
Ali Abdelgani, 30, was arrested Wednesday and charged with uttering a forged document, obtaining by false pretence and forgery. City officials confirmed Thursday afternoon that the paramedic has been terminated from the Ottawa Paramedic Service.
He was released on a promise to appear in court.
The city initially told all employees they must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Monday. However, on Thursday they extended the deadline to Nov. 15.
Police are reminding people that selling, buying, using or accepting false COVID-19 vaccination credentials is a criminal offence.
“Participating in such offences puts everybody at risk and fragilizes our community’s public health,” police said in a news release.
Mayor Jim Watson said if the employee is convicted, he should be fired as a paramedic.
"We have to give the individual their day in court, but if those facts are in fact true, that’ s...a breach of trust on the part of that individual," Watson told Newstalk 580 CFRA's Leslie Roberts on Thursday. "I’m not sure why they would go to that trouble to do that.
"They should be treated accordingly."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.