News From TICO

The Travel Industry Council of Ontario (TICO) has been busy on a number of cases of late, reporting that:

• John Douglas Mills, the sole proprietor operating as Algonquin Travel, has been charged with one count of failing to deposit customer funds into the trust account, contrary to section 27(3) of Ontario Regulation 26/05 made under the Travel Industry Act, 2002 (the Act). Mills was a registrant under the Act and terminated his registration on June 4, 2015. He operated in Oshawa and elsewhere in Ontario. The first court appearance is scheduled for Dec. 2, 2015 at 9 a.m. at the Ontario Court of Justice, Provincial Offences Court, located at 605 Rossland Rd. E., Whitby, Ontario.
• Following a guilty plea, 99 Travel and Tours Inc. (99 Travel) and Thaneshkanth Sivaganasundaram, were each convicted of one count of operating as a travel agent without registration, contrary to section 4(1)(a) of the Travel Industry Act, 2002 (the Act). Sivaganasundaram was fined $5,000 plus Victim Fine Surcharge, for a total of $6,250 payable within one year. 99 Travel received a suspended sentence. 99 Travel was a travel agent registered under the Act and operated in Toronto and elsewhere in Ontario. Sivaganasundaram was a director and officer of 99 Travel. 99 Travel’s registration was revoked effective June 11, 2014.
• After TICO made an application to the Superior Court of Justice, an Order to Cease and Desist was issued against Carolyn (Michele) Solomon and 1924067 Ontario Inc. o/a Blue Mountain Travel (Blue Mountain Travel). The Court ordered Solomon and Blue Mountain Travel, who are not currently and have never been registered as travel agents, to comply with section 4(1)(a) of the Travel Industry Act, 2002 (the Act), specifically, to cease and desist advertising, offering, counseling for the purpose of sale and selling travel services without registration. Solomon is a sole shareholder and director of Blue Mountain Travel, which operated in Toronto and elsewhere in Ontario. On Aug. 21, 2015, Solomon was charged with one count of operating as a travel agent without registration, contrary to section 4(1)(a) of the Act. She was previously employed by 407488 Ontario Ltd. o/a Business & Vacation Travel Planners, o/a Blue Mountain Travel, which was a registrant under the Act but terminated its registration effective July 31, 2105.

For more, go to http://www.tico.ca .