Michel Gravel

Michel Gravel, born on August 4, 1939, is a notable figure in Canadian politics and business. He served as a member of the Progressive Conservative party and was elected to represent the Gamelin electoral district in the 1984 federal election, becoming a part of the 33rd Canadian Parliament.

Gravel's political career took a tumultuous turn when he was charged with bribery and fraud in 1986. He confessed to receiving seventy-five thousand dollars from businesspeople seeking federal contracts. This admission led to his guilty plea in December 1988, resulting in a fine of fifty thousand dollars and a one-year prison sentence in Montreal, which he began serving in February 1989.

After demonstrating good behavior, Gravel was released to a halfway house on March 31, 1989, with full parole granted that June. Following his release, he made allegations before a Quebec Order of Engineers tribunal, claiming that fellow Progressive Conservative member Roch La Salle had also accepted bribes for government contracts. This revelation contributed to criminal charges against two other Conservative Members of Parliament, Gilles Bernier and Richard Grisé.