Friends and family of a slain gas station attendant say he told them he had to pay for the cost of stolen gas out of his own pocket.

The station owner, however, says that is not his policy.

Police say Jayesh Prajapati, a 44-year-old father, died after being struck by a vehicle after a “gas and dash” incident Saturday at a Shell station on Marlee and Roselawn Aves.

Max Edwin Tutiven, 39, is wanted for second-degree murder in connection with the incident.

Station owner-manager Maz Alibhai said on Tuesday his employees don’t have to pay for the cost of stolen gas. He said he takes care of those costs.

Employees are asked to try to write down the licence plate number of the fleeing vehicle, call police and file a report about what happened, but have clear instructions never to run after a fleeing vehicle, Alibhai added.

· Editorial: Drivers and gas stations don’t need a mandatory pre-pay system

He called Prajapati’s death a tragedy that never should have happened, saying he wants to focus on remembering his employee and helping Prajapati’s family.

“He was a very nice man. We’re all very saddened by the loss and at the moment I think we should really pay respect to his departure,” Alibhai said.

ApurvaPatel said he grew up in the same neighbourhood in India as Prajapati and they remained friends after moving to Canada.

When Patel asked his friend who paid for fuel stolen fuel in “gas and dash” incidents, he said Prajapati told him the money came from his own pocket.

Because he needed the job, Prajapati said he accepted paying for the stolen gas as part of being in the business and didn’t feel like he could complain to anyone, Patel said.

“You are in a bad situation. There is no other avenue. You have to work there.”

Prajapati’s wife, Vaishali, explained through a translator that her husband told her 50 per cent of the cost of stolen gas was deducted from his wages, something she said was “annoying.”

Requiring an employee to pay for gas someone else stole would violate section 13.5 of the province’s Employment Standards Act, Ministry of Labour spokesman Bill Killorn said. The ministry is looking into whether to launch an investigation in light of the allegations, he added.

Patel called for Shell Canada and other oil and gas companies to spend money on making gas stations safer.

A statement released by Shell Canada on Tuesday explains that retailers have a contract with Shell sites to operate and retailers “own the relationship with the staff that work at those sites.” Shell doesn’t control “terms of employment” between retailers and those employees, except that they must “comply with all laws and regulations.”

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

“We do not endorse or support any practice that contravenes (the Ontario Employment Standards Act),” the statement says.

“Today we have reminded our operators that it is illegal to charge sales associates for drive-aways, and that there will continue to be ZERO tolerance for this in the Shell network.”

The company is conducting “a full investigation” in light of Prajapati’s death.

“We will ensure that any lessons from this extremely sad incident are incorporated into ways of doing business within the Shell network for the future.”

Shell has set up a trust fund for Prajapati’s family.

Marsha Sands lives across the street from the gas station Prajapati worked at. She said she often chatted with him when visiting to fill up.

A couple months before his death, Sands said Prajapati told her he was frustrated with people filling up and driving away without paying. She said he told her the money came out of his own pocket.

“He said, ‘I have lost so much money in the last couple of months … and it’s getting really hard for me.’ ”

The Ontario Federation of Labour has called for police to launch a criminal investigation into the alleged policy.

The OFL has also set up a hotline for gas station employees to call to anonymously report any instances of being asked to pay for stolen gas.