The tragic shooting of Arashi Missaghi and Samira Yousefi has brought to light significant shortcomings in Ontario’s court and police systems. As an experienced lawyer practicing in Ontario, I believe it is crucial to examine these failures to understand how they contributed to this tragedy and to advocate for meaningful reforms that can prevent similar incidents in the future.
Background of the Case
Arashi Missaghi, a young man who was allegedly involved in various mortgage fraud cases dating back to the early 2000’s, was fatally shot in a violent incident that shocked the community on June 17, 2024. The circumstances surrounding his death and the death of Samira Yousefi have raised serious questions about the effectiveness of the judicial system and law enforcement agencies in protecting individuals and maintaining public safety.
For over two decades Missaghi was accused of commissioning elaborate mortgage fraud cases against any innocent victim that had the misfortune of meeting him. On June 17, 2024 one of those victims known as Alan Kats took the law into his own hands and committed these terrible shootings and then took his own life.
As an experienced lawyer, I have seen how police, the crown and the court system lack the resources to prioritize and prosecute financial crimes.
According to various reports, Arash Missaghi was charged with Fraud related offences in 2018 involving a Police investigation that alleged Missaghi was involved in a series of fraudulent transactions that netted him around $17 million in a scheme known as “Project Bridle Path” which involved high-end real estate around Toronto. Unfortunately, in July of 2021 the Crown withdrew the charges against Missaghi noting that it was no longer in the public interest to prosecute.
Failures in the judicial system:
1) Inadequate funding and resources available for financial crimes
There have been several studies that have reported that funding for financial crimes is simply inadequate as violent crimes will take priority especially considering the judicial system is already overwhelmed with cases.
Unfortunately, when police and the courts lack the necessary resources to prosecute certain crimes then criminals who engage in fraudulent crimes become emboldened as they believe they can commit any form of financial crime with impunity.
2) Delays in the Judicial process
A lack of funding has created significant backlogs in the judicial system as there are not enough judges to handle the province’s current caseload and as a result the public loses confidence in the judicial system. The strength of our communities and our confidence in the rule of law is eroded when our system lacks the resources to enforce those laws and hold people accountable for their actions. These systemic issues of delays lead to charges being stayed and/or withdrawn leading to criminals committing further crimes because of the lack of consequences they will receive for their actions.
In the case of Arash Missaghi he faced criminal charges on multiple occasions and on each occasion charges were withdrawn against him for various reasons presented by the Crown Attorney.
The victims of Arash Missaghi were left seeking justice through the civil courts which can often take longer to achieve results and that is what Alan Kats did in this case as he resorted to taking matters into his own hands as a result of police inaction when the crime was reported in early 2024.
The stark contrast in the civil judicial system compared to the criminal judicial system is that the rules of civil procedure are often abused as very few cases are case managed by a judge unlike criminal cases where cases are more frequently case managed by a judge especially in instances of systemic delay.
CONCLUSION
The tragic death of three individuals is a stark reminder that if more resources for police, crown prosecutors and judges are not available then more and more people will take legal matters into their own hands as people will start to lose confidence in the judicial system that is supposed to hold people accountable for their actions. As a lawyer, I advocate for comprehensive reforms that prioritize justice, accountability, and community protection. Only through concerted efforts and meaningful change can we prevent future tragedies and create a safer society for everyone.
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