Former SAMRU president charged with bank robbery
Meghan Melnyk, the former president of the SAMRU, has been charged with a bank robbery occuring on Feb. 29, 2012.
Story updated March 1, 2012 @ 7:10 p.m.
Updated again March 2, 2012 @ 7:51 p.m.
Laura Lushington
Web Editor
Meghan Melnyk, the former president of the SAMRU, has been charged with the robbery of the Servus Credit Union in the 5300 block of 68 Ave. S.E. The robbery occurred Wednesday afternoon.
As of Mar. 2, the Student’s Association of Mount Royal University has completed their investigation of Melnyk. The review began in January when they discovered “financial anomalies,” according to VP external Michelle Dennis.
They have handed their file on Melnyk over to the police to aid in the criminal investigation.
“All of the information has been given over to the authorities,” Dennis said. “It’s not that we don’t want to release that information, it’s that we legally can’t talk about it.”
Melnyk appeared in court via closed-circuit television on the morning of Mar. 2 and remains in custody.
Police said the suspect entered the bank and handed a note to the teller saying she had a weapon and was demanding money. The suspect quickly left the bank after receiving an undisclosed amount of cash.
The suspect and her vehicle was then located with the help of a police helicopter. Members of the tactical team then took the suspect into custody.
At the time of the arrest, police said a knife was found in the possession of the suspect.
According to police, all of the money has been recovered yet they are still searching for a dye pack that was given to the suspect along with the cash.
In addition to the bank robbery charge, Melnyk was charged with possession of a prohibited weapon and committing an indictable offence while disguised.
Police also stated Melnyk had outstanding arrest warrants for fraud, uttering forged documents and breach of probation.
Melnyk resigned as president from the SAMRU at the end of January.
At a press conference, Dennis said, “We are all saddened to hear that Meghan finds herself in these circumstances. We sincerely hope she gets the help and support she needs.”
The SAMRU has yet to release details of why Melnyk left, but Dennis said that it was Melnyk’s personal choice to resign and she did not give any details about why she made that choice.
Dennis pointed out it was because of the SAMRU’s current strict guidelines and review practices that they were able to discover the financial anomalies in the first place.
However, she said they are “looking at implementing further measures specifically around having individuals be more accountable,” and adjusting the power dynamic of the executive committee so the responsibility and control is more evenly spread among the four positions.
Related articles:
Melnyk’s departure remains unexplained
WeisWords: A dozen questions for the Students’ Association of Mount Royal University
With files from Bryan Weismiller.
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