{"id":803604,"date":"2026-07-15T14:10:18","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T14:10:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/803604\/"},"modified":"2026-07-15T14:10:18","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T14:10:18","slug":"first-nation-in-alberta-sues-its-former-lawyer-alleges-wrongdoing-in-construction-of-addiction-recovery-centre","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/803604\/","title":{"rendered":"First Nation in Alberta sues its former lawyer, alleges wrongdoing in construction of addiction recovery centre"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Sam Mraiche, a medical supply entrepreneur who is at the centre of a health procurement affair now under investigation by the RCMP, allegedly played an undisclosed role in a construction project for the Tsuut’ina Nation, according to a lawsuit filed in court last week.Megan Albu\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

A First Nation in Alberta is suing its former lawyer over alleged irregularities in the procurement of a provincially funded addiction recovery centre, saying that he worked with Edmonton businessman Sam Mraiche and a former chief to sole-source a $35-million contract for the facility.<\/p>\n

The Tsuut\u2019ina Nation, a Dene community with roughly 2,500 citizens located near Calgary, filed a lawsuit in the Alberta Court of King\u2019s Bench last week against former general counsel Terry Braun alleging negligence, breaches of contract and fiduciary duties, and other wrongdoing in connection with the construction project.<\/p>\n

Tsuut\u2019ina says its recovery centre, which was being built by contractor Melewka Homes Ltd., has been marred by \u201cred flags,\u201d including circumvented procurement processes, overpayments and duplicated invoices. It also alleges that former nation chief Roy Whitney and his family stood to benefit personally from the project.<\/p>\n

The nation also alleges that Mr. Mraiche, a medical-supply executive and entrepreneur, played an undisclosed role in its construction project. For nearly a year and a half, Mr. Mraiche has been at the centre of a separate health care procurement affair<\/a> that has shaken Alberta politics and prompted investigations by the RCMP and the province\u2019s auditor-general.<\/p>\n

According to the nation\u2019s statement of claim, Mr. Braun directed that Tsuut\u2019ina\u2019s correspondence be sent to Mr. Mraiche during the project\u2019s early days, and an entity connected to Mr. Mraiche allegedly paid nearly $50,000 to \u201csupport community initiatives\u201d in the First Nation.<\/p>\n

Neither Mr. Mraiche, Mr. Whitney nor Melewka Homes are named as defendants in the lawsuit, and they did not respond to a request for comment from The Globe and Mail.<\/p>\n

Mr. Braun, who has not yet filed a statement of defence, did not respond to a request for comment. The allegations have not been tested in court.<\/p>\n

Mr. Mraiche first came to widespread public attention as a result of a wrongful dismissal lawsuit filed in early 2025<\/a> by Athana Mentzelopoulos, the former chief executive officer of Alberta Health Services, who was fired by Premier Danielle Smith\u2019s government. Ms. Mentzelopoulos\u2019s lawsuit raised concerns about her agency\u2019s contracting processes and alleged ties between senior Alberta government officials and private businesses, including some owned by Mr. Mraiche. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in connection to the controversy.<\/p>\n

The Tsuut\u2019ina lawsuit marks yet another complication for Ms. Smith\u2019s signature addiction treatment initiative. The province has earmarked up to $350-million for the construction of 11 recovery centres, several of which are on Indigenous land. The government has previously said that once they are operational, the centres will be able to offer care to more than 2,000 people each year.<\/p>\n

Three Indigenous communities selected to receive provincial funding for a recovery facility \u2013 Tsuut\u2019ina, the Enoch Cree Nation and the M\u00e9tis Nation of Alberta \u2013 each hired Melewka Homes to build their recovery centres. Since then, however, the construction company has become tangled in a court dispute with a former business partner and other parties, including Mr. Mraiche. The projects, which are at various stages of completion, are now mired in at least a dozen legal proceedings as builders, including Melewka Homes and its subcontractors, have allegedly gone unpaid<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Citing the continuing litigation, spokespersons for Tsuut\u2019ina and the province\u2019s Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction declined to comment.<\/p>\n

Planning for the Tsuut\u2019ina Nation\u2019s recovery centre project began in 2023, according to the nation\u2019s statement of claim.<\/p>\n

The Alberta government, which is paying for the construction of Tsuut\u2019ina\u2019s recovery centre through grant funding distributed by its Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction, began discussing the project with the nation in April, 2023, court records show. A few months later, in early July, the nation and the province had signed a memorandum of understanding for a recovery facility, according to documents obtained by The Globe through an access to information request.<\/p>\n

Later that month, Mr. Braun directed that the nation\u2019s correspondence be shared with Mr. Mraiche, according to the lawsuit, allegedly writing: \u201cPlease share this e-mail with Sam.\u201d <\/p>\n

Tsuut\u2019ina entered into a memorandum of understanding with Melewka Homes in August, according to the court filing. That document came \u201capproximately four months\u201d before a formal grant agreement with the province, and \u201cbefore any competitive procurement process,\u201d the lawsuit alleges.<\/p>\n

The agreement between Tsuut\u2019ina and Melewka Homes noted that the contractor had paid the nation $40,000 to \u201csupport community initiatives,\u201d according to the statement of claim \u2013 but these funds were instead allegedly paid in three installments totalling $49,000 by an entity connected to Mr. Mraiche.<\/p>\n

According to the lawsuit, Mr. Braun was aware of a connection between Mr. Mraiche and Melewka Homes as early as September, 2023, when he allegedly wrote that \u201cMraiche Holdings\u201d was a \u201cholding company\u201d for Melewka Homes. Corporate filings reviewed by The Globe do not indicate that Mr. Mraiche or any businesses connected to him have ever had an ownership stake in the contractor.<\/p>\n

In February, 2024, Tsuut\u2019ina awarded the $35-million construction contract to Melewka Homes. According to the nation\u2019s lawsuit, the project was awarded \u201ccontrary to the Nation\u2019s legislation and procurement policy.\u201d After the contract was signed, Mr. Braun allegedly \u201cfailed to act on repeated red flags,\u201d including duplicated invoices and an internal warning in December, 2024, that the contract was \u201cnot being followed correctly.\u201d <\/p>\n

By mid-2025, Mr. Braun had allegedly directed payments totalling $17-million \u2013 roughly half the total value of the project \u2013 to Melewka Homes when only 10 per cent of the work had been completed.<\/p>\n

Tsuut\u2019ina also alleges that Mr. Braun, while working at the behest of Mr. Whitney, the nation\u2019s former chief, disregarded the council\u2019s directive demanding invoices and the return of $3.75-million in project funds from Melewka Homes. A majority of Tsuut\u2019ina\u2019s council, including its chief, was replaced during the nation\u2019s November, 2025, elections.<\/p>\n

The nation\u2019s lawsuit makes several further allegations about Mr. Whitney: that he had been personally involved in discussions with Melewka Homes prior to entering into an agreement with the company, and that \u201ccertain members\u201d of his family allegedly stood to \u201cdirectly benefit\u201d from a contract with the builder.<\/p>\n

Mr. Braun left his job as Tsuut\u2019ina\u2019s general counsel last year.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is with mixed emotions that I share that I am no longer serving as General Counsel for the Tsuut\u2019ina Nation,\u201d he wrote on LinkedIn in December. His post did not provide a reason for his departure.<\/p>\n

The Globe reported in March<\/a> that Melewka Homes and its principals, father and son Lewis and John Semashkewich, were suing Mr. Mraiche and several others. They alleged that Mr. Mraiche was the undisclosed \u201cdirecting mind\u201d of AEHE Holding Corp., a business development and consulting company that had worked with Melewka Homes on recovery centres in three Indigenous communities, including Tsuut\u2019ina. According to the lawsuit, Mr. Mraiche worked with others to withhold project payments until Melewka Homes agreed to pay him.<\/p>\n

Mr. Mraiche has denied any wrongdoing in his statement of defence and said his involvement in AEHE Holding was limited to providing \u201ccasual, unofficial and informal business advice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Melewka Homes is itself being sued by AEHE Holding and its owner, Mohamed Eldassouki. Mr. Eldassouki alleged in a statement of claim filed last summer that Lewis Semashkewich used a forged share sale agreement to unlawfully obtain control of Mr. Eldassouki\u2019s business and bank accounts. Lawyers for Mr. Eldassouki did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

Mr. Semashkewich and Melewka Homes have denied any wrongdoing in their statement of defence.<\/p>\n

With a report from Alanna Smith<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Sam Mraiche, a medical supply entrepreneur who is at the centre of a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":803605,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[901,888,902,879,877,903,49,48,876,895,896,891,878,875,46,549,295,894,887,914,880,881,893,889,890,884,904,885,909,910,44,912,907,911,905,908,882,898,899,714,897,906,865,61,900,892,886,883,913],"class_list":["post-803604","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-canada","tag-alberta","tag-arts-news","tag-bc","tag-breaking-news","tag-breaking-news-video","tag-british-columbia","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canada-news","tag-canada-sports","tag-canada-sports-news","tag-canada-trafficcanada-weather","tag-canadian-breaking-news","tag-canadian-news","tag-economy","tag-education","tag-environment","tag-federal-government","tag-foreign-news","tag-globe-and-mail","tag-globe-and-mail-breaking-news","tag-globe-and-mail-canada-news","tag-government","tag-life-news","tag-lifestyle","tag-local-news","tag-manitoba","tag-national-news","tag-new-brunswick","tag-newfoundland-and-labrador","tag-news","tag-northwest-territories","tag-nova-scotia","tag-nunavut","tag-ontario","tag-pei","tag-photos","tag-political-news","tag-political-opinion","tag-politics","tag-politics-news","tag-quebec","tag-sports-news","tag-technology","tag-travel","tag-trudeau","tag-us-news","tag-world-news","tag-yukon"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=803604"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803604\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/803605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=803604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=803604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=803604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}