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Ta'an chief may be ineligible to hold office

The eligibility of a First Nation chief has been called into question after leaked documents have revealed past criminal convictions. Ta'an Kwach'an Council Chief Kristina Kane, who was elected for a three-year term in Oct.

The eligibility of a First Nation chief has been called into question after leaked documents have revealed past criminal convictions.

Ta’an Kwach’an Council Chief Kristina Kane, who was elected for a three-year term in Oct. 2012, was twice charged with theft under $5,000 and sentenced to six months probation back in 1998, according to documents obtained by the News last week.

The constitution of the Ta’an Kwach’an Council states that citizens are not eligible to be chief if they have been convicted of an indictable offence or the offence of theft, fraud or false pretenses.

Yet Kane says she submitted all the required documentation when she ran for chief. She points to the First Nation’s Elections Act, which requires candidates to provide a current RCMP clearance - something she said she did.

Kane wouldn’t directly comment on the old charges of theft.

Kane was 19 years old when she committed theft of merchandise at a store in Burnaby, B.C. on March 29, 1997.

Later that year, on Dec. 31, she was caught stealing cigarettes from a store in Whitehorse.

On April 8, 1998 she was sentenced to six months probation, which also included 10 hours of community service on each count.

Another document obtained by the News revealed that by March 25, 2014 there were no record suspensions (previously called pardons) on her files, according to a court clerk at Yukon Justice.

The matter has since been brought before the Ta’an Kwach’an Judicial Council.

Contact Myles Dolphin at

myles@yukon-news.com