Andrew Harvey charges prompt review by Attorney General's office
The assistant deputy attorney general in New Brunswick says there will be a review of the process that led to fraud charges against Carleton-Victoria Liberal candidate Andrew Harvey.
Harvey had been charged with two counts of fraud, along with two other members of his family and three of their companies. Those charges were dropped on Friday.
“The decision to withdraw charges rests solely with the Crown Prosecutor’s office, which is independent from government,” Luc Labonté said in a statement.
He says the case was given a secondary review given the high-profile nature of the players. They later determined the charges didn't meet the threshold required to prosecute.
“As a result of this decision, there will be a review of the process that resulted in the laying of the charges,” said Labonté.
The statement doesn't say who will conduct the review.
The charges were related to a 2011 investigation, but were laid three weeks before the election campaign started.
Harvey had questioned the timing of the accusations so close to an election and maintained the charges against him were "baseless."
Harvey’s suspension from the party caucus has been lifted.
