OTTAWA – Former Federal Bridge Corp. president Michel Fournier has been charged with fraud, breach of trust, possession of property obtained by crime and laundering proceeds of crime.
His spouse, Judith Barkley Fournier, is charged with possession of property obtained by crime as well as laundering proceeds of crime.
The accused were released on a promise to appear in court on Sept. 26 in Montreal.
Fournier, a former chief of staff to Jean Chretien when he was Liberal leader in the early 1990s, was named head of the bridges corporation by Chretien in 1998.
The RCMP says the charges are related to allegations of bribery payments paid to Fournier by engineering company SNC-Lavalin Inc.
The Mounties allege the payments were made during the time a $127-million contract was awarded to SNC for repairs of the Jacques-Cartier Bridge in Montreal.
Fournier was president of the Federal Bridge Corp. as well as its subsidiary, the Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges Inc., when the alleged crimes took place.
