A LionC fully electric school bus is seen at an event in Ottawa on June 27, 2023. The Canadian Press/Justin Tang
The Conservative Party is calling for the federal government to disclose more information on its funding for electric bus maker Lion Electric, after the RCMP announced it raided the company’s Quebec headquarters as part of an alleged “investment fraud investigation.”
“Canadians have a right to know how much of their hard-earned money has been lost to this failed company, including through Export Development Canada: figures the government refuses to release,” Conservative MP Greg McLean said in an Oct. 23 statement.
The RCMP told The Epoch Times that the facility in Saint-Jérôme was searched as part of an investigation launched in February 2025 after complaints from more than 100 investors. The RCMP said no arrests or charges are expected at this stage.
“It is important to note that this operation relates to the company’s past activities, before it was bought by the current owners,” Corporal Martina Pillarova said. “This is a complex investigation that is expected to go on for several more months.”
Pillarova said the physical search of the headquarters had ended, but digital forensic work will continue for several days. A small number of officers will remain at the building until the work is complete.
The electric vehicle producer entered creditor protection in December 2024, and was later sold in May 2025 to a group of Quebec investors. At the time of its bankruptcy, the company owed more than $244 million to secured and unsecured creditors.
McLean said the company had received nearly $50 million from the federal government’s Strategic Innovation Fund, in addition to $470 million from the Canada Infrastructure Bank in funds for buyers to purchase Lion Electric’s buses.
McLean called for “key decision makers” around the company, such as Canada Infrastructure Bank CEO Ehren Cory and Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne, to appear before a Parliamentary committee to explain “how these decisions were made, how they went wrong, and what they are doing to avoid another scandal.”
Lion Electric did not respond to The Epoch Times’ request for comment before press time.
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