Nicole Kathleen Mann stole $456k meant for children’s charities

Calgary resident Nicole Kathleen Mann, who stole more than $450k destined for children’s charities, is headed to jail after losing an appeal of her 2022 fraud conviction. She argued the trial judge unfairly required her to prove her innocence, failed to consider her testimony that evidence was planted and didn’t scrutinize management of the charity account the money was stolen from, among other claims. The appeals panel rejected Mann’s arguments, finding her evidence was unreliable and contradictory. “The ability to deceive is an essential trait of those who engage in major frauds. The plausibility of their evidence will often be the decisive factor,” the justices wrote whilst slapping the conwoman down.

Mann was an operations manager at real estate firm Colliers when she became treasurer of the Colliers Cares Foundation, a charitable arm of the company. She was sentenced to 42 months after being found guilty of theft over $5,000, fraud over $5,000 and money laundering.

An audit determined 89 cheques totalling $456,685.13 made out to Mann had been cashed by her between 2013-17. If Nicole Mann fails to pay back the money she defrauded within five years of her release from jail, she earns another three years behind bars.