Changes made at Timmins homeless shelter after former exec accused of stealing $20K

While the community of Timmins is reeling after a local woman was charged with stealing more than $400,000 from her employers, the homeless shelter she worked at said it is making some changes.

Robin Maj (pronounced May) was promoted to the position of executive director after working at Living Space in Timmins for the past year and a half . Mar. 3/22 (Lydia Chubak/CTV News Northern Ontario)

Brian Marks is the board chair of the Living Space -- where 51-year-old Robin Maj is accused of stealing about $20,000 -- as well as the chief administrative officer for the Cochrane District Social Services Administration Board.

He said when the news about the misappropriation of shelter funds came to light and Maj was fired in March 2022, the board of directors put more financial checks and balances in place.

"Things like having purchases approved, making sure you reconcile purchases with receipts after the fact … and that you don’t have the same people involved in handling money and reconciling," Marks said.

• Download our app to get alerts sent to your device
• Get the latest newsletter sent right to your inbox

He said a reputable, local financial firm will be looking more closely over the shelter’s finances and ensuring that one person does not have full control over purchases and receipts.

While still not disclosing details of why Maj was fired after less than a month as executive director, Marks said acts of fraud can shake people’s trust in an institution.

"In the 12 months, Living Space, you know, has learned from the circumstances to make sure that nothing like this could happen again," he told CTV News in an interview Thursday.

"I want people to know that the organization takes every dollar seriously and wants to be good stewards of money that people donate and public tax money. To be able to ensure that every dollar is leveraged properly, take care of those who are in need."

Maj is also accused of misdirecting more than $380,000 into personal accounts over several months while working as a senior official at a local bank, police said.

"A decent portion of the investigation was focused on the financial records and the transfers of funds," said Marc Depatie, a spokesperson for Timmins Police Services.

"A number of interviews were conducted as to the behaviour of the accused as well. All these things, cumulatively, led to the charges being laid against the accused."

Depatie told CTV News in an email police do not have permission to identify the bank involved.

Between the two cases, she is facing a total of two charges each of fraud, theft, possession of property obtained by crime, all over $5,000, and criminal breach of trust. She is also charged with misappropriation of money under direction over $5,000 in connection to the Living Space investigation.

The charges against Maj have yet to be proven in court and her first appearance is set for Jan. 25.