Court approves settlement against B.C. social worker who defrauded Indigenous teens in foster care

B.C.'s Supreme Court has approved the settlement of a class-action lawsuit filed by Indigenous foster children who were defrauded of government aid.

Anyone who was in the care of Kelowna-based social worker Robert Riley Saunderswill receive between $25,000 and $250,000.

The province could pay out as much as $15 million inthe scandal.

In more than a dozen individual lawsuits filed in the lead-up to the agreement, former clients accused Saunders of moving them from stable, loving homes into independent living situations and then using joint bank accounts to take money provided by B.C.'sMinistry of Children and Family Developmentfor their care between 2001 and 2018.

Many claim they were left homeless as a result, subject to physical and sexual abuse and plunged into desperate lives of addiction and pain.

The ministryadmitted harm in settlement documents.

Victims urged to come forward

Plaintiff lawyer Jason Gratl says just over 100 victims have come forward to register claims, but he still doesn't know how many foster kids Saunders defrauded.

"The high-risk Aboriginal division of the Kelowna officeof the Ministry of Child and Family Developmentwas notorious for poor record keeping," Gratl told CBC News.

Anyone, Indigenous or not, who was on Saunders's foster care roster is asked to come forward.

Gratl's law firm has posted details of the case and eligibility for compensation on its website. The rulingbyJustice Alan Ross released last week approved the settlement originally proposed by the B.C. government last July. Former clients have until Oct. 23, 2022, to apply.

"The settlement agreement itself ... is a well structured, trauma-informed, process designed to avoid re-injuring class members that have suffered a great deal," said Gratl.

Independent adjudicators will determine a victim's compensation, depending on the circumstances of the case.

Financial advice will also be provided to victims.

Whereabouts unknown

Gratl says while victims welcomecompensation, many are still awaiting criminal justice.

Saunders has faced an RCMP investigation, but no criminal charges have been filed.

Saunders's current location is unknown and he has not responded to any court action.

Gratl says anonymous callers have informed his law firm that Saunders has been working at golf courses in Calgary and Winnipeg.

"He appears to be working his way east to escape his infamy," said Gratl. "He's behaving like a fugitive."

An RCMP report on the matter is "currently undergoing charge assessment," by Crown counsel, according to a statement from theB.C. Prosecution Service.

"We do not have a timeline for the completion of this process."

CBCNews reached out to B.C.'s Ministryof Children and Family Development, the Ministryof Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation, and to the attorney generalfor comment, but did not receive immediate responses.

With a file from Canadian Press