By Canadian Press

Man declared dead is likely still alive, Quebec court reaffirms in appeal case

Sep 12, 2023 | 11:13 AM

MONTREAL — Quebec’s Court of Appeal has upheld a ruling that overturned a missing man’s declaration of death more than five years after he was pronounced deceased.

Court documents say Hooshang Imanpoorsaid went missing in 2008 and was declared dead by a Quebec judge in 2017.

The documents suggest that his death freed up a $500,000 insurance policy for his wife and children.

But a police investigation revealed he had allegedly flown to Amsterdam, and the family discovered he owed large sums of money to several lenders.

A Quebec court overturned his death declaration in 2021 after insurance company Ivari presented documents it said proved he was alive and living in Iran.

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Imanpoorsaid’s wife, Deborah Carol Riddle, cast doubt on the validity of those documents and appealed the lower court decision.

But a panel of three Court of Appeal judges rejected her arguments in a decision rendered last week, writing that the evidence demonstrates that Imanpoorsaid is almost certainly alive.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2023.

The Canadian Press