Liberal MP and Parliamentary Secretary Jaime Battiste has been found guilty of multiple violations of the Canada Elections Act — including illegal donations, funnelling money through his personal account, filing false reports, and ignoring repayment orders — but was fined just $200 after claiming “personal circumstances.”

According to a series of newly released Notices of Violation from the Commissioner of Canada Elections, Battiste illegally over-donated $1,451 to his own 2019 Liberal nomination campaign in Sydney—Victoria. He was originally fined $500, but the penalty was reduced after the Commissioner cited his “cooperation” and personal difficulties.

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Investigators found Battiste accepted $8,051 in campaign donations through his personal bank account before transferring the funds to his campaign, and used his personal credit card to pay $722.32 in campaign expenses — both breaches of federal campaign-finance rules.

He also filed a false campaign return, underreporting donations by about $1,500 and misclassifying a $500 ad expense. And despite Elections Canada ordering repayment of the excess contribution in 2021, no money had been returned nearly three years later. His campaign’s financial agent, Kevin Chant, was fined $300 for failing to comply.

For comparison, Conservative MP Dean Del Mastro was convicted in 2014 for $21,000 in over-contributions and campaign overspending. He was handcuffed, shackled in leg irons, and led out of court to serve one month in jail, followed by four months of house arrest and 18 months of probation.

Battiste — a Liberal MP who once sparked outrage for saying “all skinny Aboriginal girls are on meth” and blamed “personal circumstances” for that too — walks away with a fine smaller than a speeding ticket.