A retirement home owner and its sole director have been fined a combined $155,000 after being convicted on multiple offences under Ontario’s Safe Drinking Water Act related to the operation of a drinking water system serving elderly residents.
In February 2026, 2652366 Ontario Inc. was convicted of 11 charges and fined $85,000, while its sole officer and director Safraz Ally was convicted of 11 charges and fined $70,000, according to an Ontario Court bulletin.
The Ontario Court of Justice in Napanee also imposed victim fine surcharges of $21,250 and $17,500 respectively, with both defendants given 60 days to pay.
The convictions stem from violations that occurred between March 2022 and December 2023 at Adair Place Retirement Residence, also known as Stone Mills Retirement Home, in Tamworth, Ontario, just north of Napanee.
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The retirement home, which housed up to 27 elderly residents before closing in December 2023, operated a drinking water system supplied by a well that was classified as a small non-municipal, non-residential system serving a designated facility.
According to the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, the company and Ally operated the drinking water system without a valid operator’s certificate after Ally’s certification expired in March 2022. They were also convicted of failing to conduct required testing for E. coli and total coliform bacteria in raw and distribution water samples, failing to ensure weekly maintenance was carried out by a trained person, and failing to comply with a Provincial Officer’s Order requiring the submission of sampling and maintenance plans.
Although Ally retained a certified drinking water operator in October 2022 to oversee sampling and maintenance, those services were suspended from June to August 2023 after invoices went unpaid.
The ministry said records showed that required raw water samples were not collected in May and October 2022 and again in June and July 2023. Distribution water samples were also missed in May 2022 and June and July 2023.
An engineer’s evaluation report required the treatment system to be inspected and maintained weekly by a trained person. However, between March 2022, and December 2023, those maintenance requirements were not met.
Investigators also found the facility lacked a required automatic shut-off valve on its ultraviolet disinfection system until August 2023. The valve is designed to prevent untreated water from entering the distribution system if the UV equipment fails or loses power.
The missing safety feature became significant in October 2022 when the UV disinfection unit malfunctioned, resulting in undertreated water being supplied to residents. During that incident, one water sample exceeded provincial limits for total coliform bacteria, recording 79 total coliforms.
The convictions also relate to the defendants’ failure to comply with a Provincial Officer’s Order issued in January 2022 requiring a drinking water sampling plan and maintenance plan. According to the ministry, neither document was submitted during the period covered by the charges.
The ministry’s Environmental Investigations and Enforcement Branch investigated the matter and laid the charges that resulted in the convictions.
