An $800-dispute has landed a Watson Lake man in jail to finish a 7 1/2-month sentence.

In territorial court Tuesday morning, Judge John Faulkner found Michael Gagnon guilty of fraud. He opted not to read his written decision, which comes three weeks after Gagnon's trial.

During the trial, court heard from several witnesses that in 2004, John DesRosiers was called by someone claiming to the be Ed Jacobs, the owner of Jacobs Industries, asking about money that was owed for a piece of machinery.

It was arranged that a cab would come and pick up the $800 DesRosiers would pay.

The cab driver, Calvin Dickson, was called to an area where he said he met Gagnon, who had him go collect the cash. Dickson gave DesRosiers a receipt for the money and brought the cash back to Gagnon, who gave him $50 for the work.

Meanwhile, DesRosiers told his wife, who was visiting their daughter in Whitehorse, about the phone call and money being collected. When she told Ed Jacobs' son Bob about it, he told her his father was now living at Macaulay Lodge and wouldn't have made the call.

It was then that John DesRosiers took the issue to the RCMP.

Throughout the trial, Gagnon remained adamant he was not involved in any way.

Before proceeding to sentencing on Tuesday, Crown counsel Edith Malcolm noted her concern that without a custody report, Gagnon's credit for the time he's spent in remand custody could be in question as to whether he should receive a two-to-one credit if he was unable to access programming at the jail or a 1.5-to-one credit if he was.

However, Gagnon told his lawyer, Lynn MacDiarmid, to go ahead with the sentencing, which, without the report, would be at the 1.5-to-one credit.

'I don't care about my jail report,' Gagnon said, later noting he plans to appeal the conviction.

Before the sentencing, Gagnon also pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to show up for court in December 2004.

He failed to attend because he was working, the court heard from MacDiarmid.

Malcolm suggested a sentence in the range of 35 to 40 days for the failing to attend charge and a range of six to eight months for the fraud. She suggested a probation order, which would include an $800-restitution order, should follow the jail term.

She pointed out that Gagnon's criminal record includes numerous charges of dishonesty. That includes past convictions of fraud, theft, forgery, impersonation with intent, public mischief and failing to comply.

Also aggravating the case is the fact the DesRosiers are an older couple and though $800 may not be a large amount by court standards, for the DesRosiers, it is.

While MacDiarmid acknowledged the term should be spent in custody, given Gagnon's criminal record, she argued a 60- to 90-day sentence would be more appropriate.

'It was certainly not a sophisticated, ongoing fraud,' she said, adding she doesn't take issue that the $800 was a lot for the victims to lose through fraud.

She also reviewed Gagnon's past. He is originally from Ontario, but has lived in the Yukon for about the past 20 years, primarily in Watson Lake with some time spent in Whitehorse.

Gagnon is also the primary financial provider for his wife and four children. He has worked mainly in the oil industry, travelling in and out of town to work in Fort Nelson, B.C. In 2004, he was working in and out of town.

MacDiarmid also said that though he didn't show up for court in December 2004 and has accepted responsibility, he was in contact with the RCMP and told them he had to work.

He had also been trying to get a polygraph test done on the matter through the RCMP, but didn't seem to get anywhere with that goal.

After not showing up for court in December 2004, the warrant on him wasn't executed until this past January. Gagnon doesn't understand why there was no contact made with him before then, said MacDiarmid.

Faulkner opted for a sentence of six months on the fraud charge, noting it was committed on an elderly couple and resulted in a significant loss for them. A term of 45 days was also ordered for not showing up to court, totalling the 7 1/2 months for both.

The judge noted with respect to both charges, particularly the fraud, Gagnon has an extensive related criminal record.

A credit of more than four months was given for his time in remand at a credit of 1.5 to one.

Gagnon was also ordered to a nine-month probation term following his jail sentence. Under his probation, he must pay the $800-restitution to John DesRosiers within six months of the probation order taking effect.

Gagnon must also keep the peace and be of good behaviour; report to court as directed; report to a probation order within two working days of being released; and advise the officer of any change in address, name and employment.