Former ministry staffer fined $2,500 in connection to triple-delete scandal

A former B.C. government staffer has been fined $2,500to one count oflying to privacy commission investigators in connection to the so-called triple-deleteemailscandal.

George Steven Gretes, a former employee inMinister of Transportation Todd Stone' s office,pleaded guiltyinVictoriaProvincial Court on Thursday

"The judge was impressed I think by his sincerity and the fact he was really atoned for what he did," said Gretes's lawyerChrisConsidine.

"I cannot really think of very many people who havedone so much in order to make up for thaterror in judgment as the judge called it."

Gretes wascharged with two counts of willfully making false statements to mislead, or attempt to mislead, under the province's Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

Heallegedlytolda colleague while working inthe minister's officeto deleteemailslinked to freedom of information requests an accusation he maintains is false.

In court, Judge Lisa Mrozinskicalled what Gretesdid a "stupid lie"and she had no doubt he regretted his actions.

ConsidinesaysGreteshas voluntarilypaid back more than $8,000 in legal fees originally undertakenby the province.

After hearing ofGretes's fine,NDP MLA MaurineKaragianis saidshe believes penalties need to be stiffer.

"I think the whole issue of what kind of consequencesthere are for individualswho breakthese laws needs some revisitng."

The former ministry staffer faced amaximum fine of $5,000.

Triple delete

The scandal broke in May 2015 when formerB.C. government staffer Tim Duncan revealedmore than a dozen emailswere deleted in November 2014 following a freedom of information requestrelating to theHighway of Tears, astretch of road notorious for cases of missing and murdered women.

Aninvestigation into the scandal byPrivacy Commissioner ElizabethDenham concludedGreteslied under oath when he denied thatheintentionally deletedemails and records related to the Highway of Tears. Gretes resigned after Denham's report was referred to the RCMP for investigation.

According toDenham'sreport,Access Denied,triple deleting means first moving anemailto the computer system's "deleted"folder, expunging theemailfrom the folder itself, and then manually overriding a backup that allows the system to recover deleted items for up to 14 days.

After the scandal came to light, PremierChristy Clark hired former privacy commission DavidLoukidelisto draft new guidelines for the government,which heissued in a report in December 2015.

With files from Richard Zussman