Ex-Elections B.C. IT Manager Loses Appeal Over Leaked Saanich Files

A former Elections B.C. information technology executive has lost his appeal in a privacy case over leaked District of Saanich files, with the province’s top court upholding a lower court ruling that ordered him to destroy the records.

The B.C. Court of Appeal dismissed Guy Gondor’s challenge to a 2023 Supreme Court decision that found, on a balance of probabilities, he had made unauthorized copies of thousands of district files while serving as its IT manager — and that some of those files were later used by his son, Darian, in a dispute with neighbours.

Gondor argued the trial judge erred in admitting expert evidence and in finding his testimony was not credible. But Justice Elizabeth Bennett, writing for the court, said there was “no palpable error” in the lower court’s assessment.

“There is no basis … to overturn the judge’s findings with respect to the credibility of Mr. Gondor, or the conclusion that he … had possession of the records outside of his employment,” the ruling states.

The case stems from a March 2022 privacy breach, when two anonymous DVDs containing thousands of internal district records — including 259 files classified as personal information — were sent to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner. The records also included materials related to Darian Gondor, who had been engaged in long-running bylaw disputes over his property.

An investigation by consultancy firm KPMG traced the copying of more than 2,500 records to Gondor’s login credentials in late 2021 and early 2022. The firm found the data was later burned onto DVDs that matched documents Darian submitted to the district.

While Gondor admitted to copying records during municipal laptop setup and testing, he denied retaining them after leaving his post in February 2022. The courts, however, found his explanations unconvincing and ordered him to destroy any copies in his possession.

Following last year’s Supreme Court ruling, Gondor departed Elections B.C., where he had been serving as executive director of IT.

The appeal decision leaves intact the destruction order sought by the provincial attorney general under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, which allows the province to compel the return or destruction of unlawfully held personal information.