Facial recognition software designed to protect B.C. drivers' licences from fraud helped kick-start an investigation into a Victoria man who allegedly used forged documents to get a job with the B.C. government, court heard Tuesday.
Insurance Corp. of B.C. ran Richard Wainwright's face through its database of licence photos in 2009 and found he also had a licence under a different name, an ICBC investigator told a Victoria courtroom.
Wainwright's picture came back as a match for a man named Richard Perran, who had an expired learner's licence, among other provincial and federal identity documents, testified ICBC investigator Robert Aitken.
"It appeared to me to be the same person," said Aitken, who also matched the hair colour, eye colour, date of birth and weight of the two identities.
The red flag led to an ICBC investigation into Wainwright's identity, which was ultimately turned over to the RCMP and B.C. government.
Wainwright had a criminal record for theft, possession of counterfeit material and stolen property in Kamloops in 2004, court heard.
Yet in 2007, under the name Perran, he was hired by the provincial government.
Crown prosecutor Marian Brown said Wainwright is charged with allegedly forging his criminal record check, which he obtained under the clean identity of Perran and then allegedly altered it to say Wainwright-Perran.
He is also charged with using that allegedly altered record to obtain his government job, said Brown.
Wainwright's trial began Tuesday.
The case was an embarrassing scandal for the B.C. government when it became public in 2009, and led the government to strengthen its criminal record check process. When Wainwright was fired in 2008, he was working as a supervisor in the Ministry of Children and Family Development.
Kirk Karaszkiewicz, Wainwright's defence lawyer, spent much of the trial's first day questioning the reliability of ICBC's facial recognition system. ICBC began using the technology in 2008 and it gained prominence after the corporation offered to use it to help identify Stanley Cup rioters in Vancouver.
During a voir dire a trial within a trial Karaszkiewicz said an RCMP search warrant of Wainwright's Victoria condo, which was based in part on facial recognition, should be thrown out because there was no reasonable basis for the search and it violated Wainwright's Charter rights.
Provincial court Judge Loretta Chaperon disagreed and let the search warrant stand.
RCMP Sgt. Andrew Cowan, head of the commercial crime unit in Victoria that investigated the case, said Wainwright's previous convictions related to forgery, combined with his numerous identity documents in each name made him suspicious.
"He has two lives in essence, that's what I believe is going on," Cowan testified.
ICBC drivers' licence records showed Wainwright shared a Victoria address with a woman named Gillian Perran, said Aitken. Perran was believed to be Wainwright's wife. She was also employed by the B.C. government, but under the name Wainwright, said Aitken. She was also fired by the government.
Karaszkiewicz asked the ICBC investigator if anyone had checked whether the two were married and had changed or hyphenated their names.
Aitken said that, as part of discussions with the RCMP, it was determined B.C.'s Vital Statistics agency had no record of a name change for Wainwright.
Karaszkiewicz questioned Aitken about situations in which common-law couples would not have to notify Vital Statistics about a name change and, using primary and secondary identification obtained under their spouse's name, could apply for a drivers' licence.
Aitken said it's possible to do so in some circumstances, but such a case would likely be flagged for investigation.
The trial continues today.
rfshaw@timescolonist.com