Made with Love

$2M in Christmas toys missing from Salvation Army

Buckfifty

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 21, 2012
Messages
218
This is low very low. I heard they already fired their Director of operations.

TORONTO - Christmas could be much bleaker for thousands of Toronto's underprivileged kids following the disappearance of about $2 million worth of toys collected at a Salvation Army facility.

What happened to the toys -- reported missing from the Railside Rd. warehouse southeast of Lawrence Ave. E. and the Don Valley Parkway after an internal audit -- is still under investigation by Toronto Police.


"They're investing a theft," a source told the Toronto Sun.


Det. Bob Strain, the officers heading the investigation at 33 Division is not expected to be back on duty until Thursday, colleagues said. His partner was also unavailable.

In addition to tonnes of toys, people donate food, which is distributed annually around the city from the Railside warehouse.

Salvation Army officials could not be reached Tuesday evening.

https://www.torontosun.com/2012/11/20/2m-in-christmas-toys-missing-from-salvation-army
 
Yes he was fired and I hope we can recuperate most of the toys. It's for kids dammit not for a group of clan to make profit out of it.

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/ar...my-victim-of-2-million-toy-theft-charity-says

The Salvation Army has allegedly been the victim of an intricate fraud, robbing it of more than $2 million in toys from its Toronto warehouse over the course of two years, charity officials say.
The agency fired the executive director of the warehouse Monday. He was put on paid leave shortly after a whistleblower employee came forward in mid-August. His firing came as the result of an internal audit, said Maj. John Murray of the Salvation Army.

Food and other donations are alleged to have disappeared as well.
“At the root of it, it’s about deception and about deceiving people and organizations and it would appear from everything I’ve seen and know about it, it was very sophisticated, it was intentional, well planned out,” Murray said
.
The 2011 Sunshine List, which lists public sector employees making more than $100,000 per year, names David Rennie as executive director of the warehouse facility on Railside Rd. He made $111,215 that year.

While Murray refused to confirm the name of the executive director, he said the person who was fired had been in the position since February 2010.
Attempts to reach Rennie Tuesday night were unsuccessful.

Murray declined to comment on whether or not any other employees may have been involved, saying there is an ongoing Toronto police investigation. No charges have been announced.
Police are expected to release details Wednesday.

Murray said the anonymous whistleblower, believed to be an employee at the warehouse, reported “irregularities” at the Railside Rd. facility, near Lawrence and Victoria Park Aves.
The warehouse was responsible for receiving, sorting and distributing both food and toy donations to needy families.

“It took the strength of a whistleblower to bring it forward,” said Murray, who noted the facility processes about seven million tonnes of food and products each year. “I think it really speaks to their character and we’re very pleased, and frankly indebted to them, that they did this.”

Murray said the theft was something that would have evaded their usual security procedures.
“The Salvation Army took immediate actions at the Railside facility,” said Murray, noting they changed the locks, reset the cameras and reprogrammed security within 24 hours of the audit being conducted.

It is not known what became of the missing toys.
Bettylynn Stoops, a retired civil servant with more than 30 years of experience, will start as executive director of the Railside facility next week.

Meanwhile, another audit on one of the Salvation Army’s centres in Ottawa resulted in the firing of its executive director when $250,000 was found missing from the operating budget.
It’s believed the money was taken over several years. Executive director Perry Rowe had been with the centre for eight years prior to the incident.

Murray said the two incidents are unrelated, but that “the timing obviously is difficult and will certainly perhaps raise questions for people.”
Barb Mrozek, director of Toronto Star Charities and Philanthropy, was shocked to hear about the Salvation Army’s loss.

“I can’t imagine what they are going to do,” she said Tuesday night. “I would probably have a heart attack.”
To put the $2 million loss in context, the Toronto Star Santa Claus Fund is raising $1.6 million this Christmas to provide gift boxes to 45,000 children — including about 35,000 on welfare and another 10,000 referred to the fund through community agencies and the city’s shelter system.

The $2-million lost would provide Star Christmas boxes for every needy child whose family wanted one.
The Salvation Army plans to address the public at a news conference Wednesday afternoon at the Railside warehouse.

The warehouse suffered a massive loss in 2008 when a blaze destroyed toys and food. There were no injuries or damage to the structure, but the depot lost much of what was to be given out around Christmastime that year.

Murray noted the theft at the warehouse isn’t going to affect this year’s distribution of toys and food because it was spread out over the past two years.

“We do have toy product in the warehouse ready to go for our Christmas program,” he said. “We’re good to move forward but the reality is that the Salvation Army is going to work very hard to ensure and reassure people in terms of the public trust.”


With files from Laurie Monsebraaten, Daniel Dale, Jayme Poisson, Marco Chown Oved and The Canadian Press
 
Another shocker news. What he wasn't making enough money?.
 
I give to them....
I can not believe that others are not involved....
I will not be giving to them until there is a way of making
sure that all donations are counted for....
I guess I should just find a family in need and donate right to them....
Nobody will need a salary etc......
 
papasmerf said:
this came up in August

Why are we reading this now??

Because I for one am slow.....in more ways than one....:LMAO:
 
but hof is not

No, he is the modern day Gandhi and Einstien rolled together
to form a Super Human Humanitarian Intellect....
Just my thought on what a Fine Human Being he is.....
and how we should look up to him in a Godly Fashion....
Just my 2 cents....
 
I heard on the radio today one of their head guys make over $250 salary. I'm sorry, I will not donate to any charity where the employees make more than the average person.
 
Thats the problem with charities today, they have become administrative heavy. Last time I took some stuff to sally ann, it was turned away. Furniture less than one year old and we had called ahead of time, sent pictures of the furniture and they said they would take it only to be sent away when we arrived.

It ended up being donated to an elderly lady whose furniture was falling apart and couldn't afford to replace them. Not only did we deliver it, we took her old stuff out and disposed of it. She was so happy and we felt so good seeing her that happy.

I will never donate cash unless I know 95% or more is going to where its supposed to go in fact I've stopped giving to many charities for that reason.

The Christmas toy drive cash that's raised from the Christmas Party goes to buy discounted toys and I always top it up.

I'm finding the gents on this site tend to speak with their hearts and wallets. It's always a good thing.
 
A massive cache of goods stolen from the Salvation Army in a $2 million fraud have been recovered from a Brampton warehouse, according to a Toronto police source.
A police source told the Star 146 “skids of property,” including baby strollers, cribs and infant toys were found on Friday after two weeks of investigation.
The total haul, the source said, is roughly equivalent to three tractor trailers full of goods.
“We’re doing an inventory on the items with the intention that they will be returned back to the Salvation Army,” the source said.
Last week, the 130-year-old charity fired David Rennie, executive director of its Toronto warehouse, after an internal audit revealed Sally Ann had been defrauded over a two-year period. No charges have been laid in the alleged theft.
The source said the investigation is ongoing. Police have said they have identified persons of interest, though it remains unclear how many were involved in the scheme.
More to come

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/1292597--salvation-army-toys-recovered-by-police
 
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