Cesar Correia

Written by Paul Dunn for the Purposes of Classroom Discussion

In 1984, when he was eighteen years old, Cesar Correia murdered his father, killing him
with a baseball bat, and dumping the body in the Assiniboine River.

His father, Joachim, was abusive to Cesar, to Cesar’s brother, and to Cesar’s mother. The
judge said that Joachim was a cruel and abusive man whose home “was a living hell.”
Cesar argued that he was protecting his mother and younger brother. The Judge said, “I
have no difficulty in concluding it instilled in the heart and mind of the accused a sense
of devastation, desperation and frustration, which was consumed in a burning hatred for
his father.”

Cesar and his father got into an argument while working on the family car. Cesar got a
baseball and clubbed his father from behind, hitting him three or four times. He then got a
smaller bat and hit him once or twice more. He then wrapped the body in a blanket and
put it and his bicycle in the family car. He drove to the Assiniboine River where he
dumped the body in the river, left the car, and returned home on the bicycle.

Both Cesar and his mother claimed that they did not know what happened to Joachim.
Cesar helped in the search for his missing father. A few weeks later, some children found
the body while playing by the river. When questioned again by the police, he quickly
confessed. He was initially charged with murder, but later pleaded guilty to
manslaughter. He was sentenced to prison for five year.

While at prison he completed his university education, graduating from the University of
Manitoba in 1989, with a Bachelor of Science degree in computer sciences and statistics.
After he was released from jail, he moved to Toronto and began working in the
information technology industry.

In Canada, people can apply for a pardon five years after the expiration of their sentence.
They must have completed their sentence and demonstrated that they are law-abiding
citizens. In 1996, twelve years after the murder and conviction, Cesar applied for and
received a pardon. A pardon means that his was record was expunged, and so, if asked,
Cesar could truthfully say “I do not have a criminal record.”

In 1999 Cesar formed an information dissemination company, Infolink Technologies

Ltd., with George Theodore. In 2003, George resigned from the company and sued Cesar
for lost profits on two transactions. George contended that two customers backed out of
deals when they found out about Cesar’s conviction. George did not know about Cesar’s
criminal past.

Source
Adapted from “The Case of Cesar Correia,” in Brooks, L., and Dunn, P. 2021. Business
& Professional Ethics for Directors, Executives & Accountants, 9th edition.
Cengage Learning.