A Queen’s University business school graduate, who served as president of the Queen’s Social Investment Initiative Club, quietly pleaded guilty Wednesday to defrauding the organization while he was a student here.

Bafode Fadiga, 23, was given an absolute discharge — which means he has no record of criminal conviction — in a deal previously worked out between his Toronto lawyer, Rob MacDonald, and the local Crown attorney’s office. But it was only put into effect by Justice J. Peter Wright after Fadiga put together $18,253.89 in restitution for the student club and agreed to make a $1,000 donation to Kingston’s court diversion program before heading back to Toronto.

Fadiga pleaded guilty in Kingston’s Ontario Court of Justice to a single count of fraud under $5,000. MacDonald told the judge his client could have faced multiple counts, but it was part of the resolution agreement to limit it to one.

He also disclosed that it was important Fadiga receive an absolute rather than a conditional discharge because his business career requires the ability to travel. U.S. border services, the defence lawyer told Justice Wright, don’t necessarily view a conditional discharge as a clean record.

Assistant Crown attorney Elisabeth Foxton told the judge that Fadiga was president of the Queen’s Social Investment Initiative Club between April 2013 and May 2014.

The club invests with entrepreneurs in low-income markets, who don’t have access to affordable seed money but whose ideas have the potential to create employment in their communities. Foxton told the judge involvement by Queen’s School of Business students is “an aid to learning.”

It was discovered, however, that there were a number of expenditures during Fadiga’s term as president that were not above board.

Foxton cited $5,391.67 for food and alcohol paid out of club funds and 15 money transfers that went directly to Fadigo.

She told Justice Wright that $600 directed to a “David McIntyre” actually paid Fadiga’s rent for May 2013, and 11 transfers totalling $11,250.87 were directed to accounts held by Fadiga in different names.

He had access to several accounts, she said, as well as the club’s group account, from which he made numerous e-transfers.

The total loss during his year as president, in transfers, fees and purchases, Foxton told the judge, was $18,253.89.

Defence lawyer MacDonald suggested that one of the transfers, cited — $1,011.35 to MADE Clothing of Toronto — actually did benefit the group and suggested that club rules gave the president discretion to spend club money on hospitality. But “certainly not to line his own pockets,” he conceded.

He told the judge “Mr. Fadiga had to work so hard to get into Queen’s Business School” and “this whole affair has put such a black mark on his record.” A criminal record, he said, would have “killed his career.”

According to MacDonald, his client was unemployed for a significant amount of time. But he said “this is an individual who does not have a criminal record and has done everything he could to earn back every dollar.”

Justice Wright accepted the deal the lawyers put forward as a joint submission. But addressing Fadiga directly, he said: “I have to ask, what were you thinking.”

Fadiga took a moment to answer and then replied: “I was thinking I’d be able to get the money back to the club without getting into trouble.”

Justice Wright gave him six months to pay up — although MacDonald said he already has the restitution money, in full, in his law practice trust account.

Then the judge told Fadiga that, given his ethics, he might want to reconsider career paths and suggested banking may not be his best option.

sue.yanagisawa@sunmedia.ca