Joanne Lynette McCormick is accused of siphoning funds from a former Nanaimo non-profit organization and private business. (File photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW staff

charges applied

Fraud and theft charges levelled against Nanaimo prosecutor’s wife

Jul 30, 2025 | 2:33 PM

NANAIMO — Criminal code charges have been applied against a woman for allegedly misappropriating funds from a since-defunct Nanaimo non-profit agency, as well as a private business.

The BC Prosecution Service (BCPS) announced this week the approval of two counts each of theft and fraud over $5,000 against 56-year-old Joanne Lynette McCormick of Nanaimo.

Those charges were laid by a special prosecutor.

Dates of the alleged offences are between April 2019 and October 2021, and November 2022 and April 2024, according to the BCPS.

The accused is married to veteran Nanaimo Crown prosecutor Basil McCormick, who went on leave late last year.

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“Ms. McCormick was arrested by police and released on an undertaking to appear in Nanaimo provincial court on September 30, 2025,” the BCPS stated.

According to the BCPS, in December 2021, the Vancouver Island District RCMP contacted its office in relation to fraud and theft allegations against McCormick linked to her involvement with a Nanaimo non-profit agency.

In May 2024, the special prosecutor’s mandate then expanded to include a separate investigation involving a Nanaimo business.

While the names of the impacted non-profit organization and Nanaimo business tied to the charges have not been released by the BCPS, civil litigation by the Society for Equity, Inclusion and Advocacy (SEIA) was filed against Joanne McCormick in 2023.

Prior to shutting down, SEIA provided tenancy supports/advocacy, aid in accessing social assistance programs and women-only peer supports. (File photo/NanaimoNewsNOW)

SEIA, which operated in downtown Nanaimo on Wallace and Albert streets, shut down after the agency reported in December 2021 it was victimized by “a possible misappropriation” of donations and other funding by a former employee.

The agency’s funding crisis included the sudden closure of Nanaimo’s only daytime warming shelter at the time.

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