Bill C-290 Religious Property Theft

Read Full Bill Text Here

C-290 

An Act to Amend the Criminal Code (Theft of Property of Cultural or Religious Significance)

Short Title: An Act to Amend the Criminal Code (Theft of Property of Cultural or Religious Significance)

Bill Type: Private Member’s Bill

Bill Sponsor: Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan)

Status: Outside the Order of Precedence — Introduced June 17, 2026. This Bill has not passed yet.

How would YOU vote? Scroll down to vote and comment below.

What is this Bill For?

Bill C-290 would create a standalone Criminal Code offense for stealing property of cultural or religious significance. Under current Law, stealing a Torah scroll, an Indigenous ceremonial object or a church artifact is prosecuted as ordinary theft — the cultural or religious meaning of the item is not a separate offense category. This Bill changes that.

Two offenses are created.

  • Theft of cultural or religious property carries up to 10 years on indictment.
  • Possessing such property knowing it was stolen carries up to 5 years on indictment.

Both can also be prosecuted by summary conviction for less serious cases.

The Bill also adds the new theft offense to the list of offenses that can be investigated using wiretap and other electronic surveillance under section 183 of the Criminal Code — meaning Law enforcement can use those tools to investigate cultural and religious property theft rings.

⚠️ "Cultural or religious significance" is never defined — The entire offense rests on this phrase. The Bill creates no definition, no threshold, no process for determining whether a stolen item meets the standard and no guidance for courts on how to make that determination. Every prosecution under this Bill will require a court to decide what qualifies and that determination will be contested every time.

WHO GAINS POWER

  • Law enforcement gains the ability to use wiretap and electronic surveillance to investigate theft of cultural or religious property — a significant investigative tool not currently available for property theft
  • Communities whose cultural or religious objects are targeted gain explicit recognition in the Criminal Code that their losses are distinct from ordinary theft

WHO LOSES POWER

  • Thieves who target cultural or religious property face a separate, elevated offense category — ordinary theft defenses and sentencing ranges no longer apply
  • Receivers and possessors of stolen cultural or religious property face up to 5 years — significantly higher than current possession penalties for equivalent property values

WHO GAINS MONEY

  • No direct financial transfer is created by this Bill

WHO LOSES MONEY

  • No direct financial impact is created by this Bill

THE CATCH

⚠️ "Cultural or religious significance" is never defined — Courts will have to determine on a case-by-case basis whether stolen property meets this standard. No minimum threshold, no designated authority, no list of qualifying categories. A stolen communion chalice, a pow wow drum, a family heirloom with religious meaning — all potentially covered, all potentially contested. Inconsistent application across jurisdictions is likely.

⚠️ Wiretap authorization is a significant expansion — Adding this offense to the section 183 list means Law Enforcement can seek judicial authorization to intercept private communications in cultural and religious property theft investigations. For a property offense — even an elevated one — that is a substantial investigative power. The Bill contains no threshold requirement for when that power can be sought.