Father jailed after failing to pay more than $37,000 in child support

A British Columbia judge has ordered a father to spend 15 days in jail after finding he failed to pay more than $37,000 in child support owed to the mother of his child.

According to a BC court decision, the province's Director of Maintenance Enforcement brought the case to a committal hearing, described by the judge as “a last chance to avoid imprisonment” for failing to pay child support.

The father, whose identity is protected by a publication ban, owed $37,312.54 at the time of the hearing.

Judge Micah Rankin ruled the man had had not shown a genuine change in financial circumstances that prevented him from making payments.

“There are troubling aspects of Mr. M.’s conduct in the proceedings, his testimony in court, and inconsistencies in the evidence that raise significant concerns about his credibility,” Rankin wrote.

The court heard the father had previously agreed to pay monthly child support but repeatedly failed to meet those obligations.

Bank records reviewed by the court showed spending on online gambling, flights, nightclubs and other personal purchases, while the judge rejected claims that company funds were unavailable.

“I have concluded that the change in directors was little more than a flimsy attempt to hide behind the corporate veil,” Rankin wrote.

The judge ruled the father had missed five payments and ordered him to serve 15 days in a provincial jail.

The decision says he will be released immediately if the outstanding child support is paid.