A former principal and Brighton resident is facing charges after what police described as a lengthy fraud investigation.
On Wednesday, Feb. 14, Prince Edward County OPP issued a release saying the day prior, on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024, officers arrested and charged an individual following a lengthy fraud investigation. Police said this followed an organization reporting that funds – more than $80,000 – had allegedly been misappropriated.
Police detailed several charges – none of which have been proven in court – and said they would not identify the organization, as it was considered a victim.
Police identified the accused as Todd Bishop, 51, of Brighton. As a result of their investigation, police said the accused was charged with criminal breach of trust; three counts of forgery; four counts of fraud over $5,000; one count of fraud under $5,000; four counts of theft over $5,000, and one count of theft under $5,000.
None of these charges have been proven in court. Police said the accused was released from custody and is scheduled to appear before the Ontario Court of Justice in Picton on Feb. 29, 2024.
In response to inquiries on Thursday, Feb. 15, the Kawartha, Pine Ridge District School Board (KPRDSB) issued a statement from chairperson Jaine Klassen Jeninga – in the statement, the accused is identified as a former staff member. Bishop is no longer an employee of the board but was previously a principal of Murray Centennial Public School, according to the statement.
“There are a number of charges related to his role as principal – including multiple counts of theft over $5,000; fraud over $5,000; forgery, and criminal breach of trust,” reads the statement.
“As noted in the OPP release, the charges are related to an investigation of over $80,000 in (alleged) missing funds.”
“The charges are related to Mr. Bishop’s service as principal of Murray Centennial Public School from September 2018 to September 2023,” reads the statement.
“As a public organization, we take our responsibility for financial accountability very seriously. Mr. Bishop is no longer an employee of the board.”
“We have ongoing processes in place for the monitoring of all school-related funds, and whenever we believe there may be financial irregularities within a school, we immediately contact police authorities. In this case, we reported our findings to the Ontario Provincial Police.”
“In addition to conducting our own internal investigation, we have been active partners in the external police investigation of this issue.”
As part of an internal investigation, the board also said any school-based funds that were allegedly lost were replaced.
“As this matter is currently before the courts, we are unable to comment further.”
(Written by: Sarah Hyatt)
