Brown, in his first filings to the integrity watchdog in February, called Hillier's allegations "entirely fictional" and a "crass attempt to spin the legal as illegal." In a second filing and later interviews, Brown admitted to certain breaches, Wake noted.
At the core of the complaint was Brown's 2016 purchase of a $2.3 million five-bedroom lakefront home in his riding of Simcoe-North. In order to close the deal Brown was required by the bank to pay a $575,000 down payment but only had $200,000 himself from the sale of his previous home, Wake's investigation noted.
Initially, Brown arranged a deal with Johal, who was a personal friend, to sell him his stake in a Barrie, Ont. bar and some Aeroplan miles for $375,000, Wake's decision said. That deal was later dropped and Johal instead loaned Brown the money, the men told Wake during separate interviews.
"It is clear to me that the non-disclosure was deliberate and not through inadvertence," Wake said in his decision.
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