Robert Lafrenière, shown in June, 2013, is head of Quebec’s permanent anti-corruption unit, known as UPAC.CHRISTINNE MUSCHI/Reuters
Quebec's anti-corruption unit says more than half the arrests it has made since its inception nearly three years ago came in 2013.
The permanent anti-corruption unit, known as UPAC, arrested 66 people this year.
The charges include fraud against the government, breach of trust, bid-rigging and gangsterism.
Those arrested include former Laval mayor Gilles Vaillancourt as well as Michael Applebaum, then-interim mayor of Montreal.
The unit has arrested 118 people since since it came into force.
The squad also doled out $30-million in fines to individuals and companies this year.
UPAC received 1,250 tips from the public in 2013, bringing the number of tips to 2,150 since early 2011.
Investigators met with some 7,000 people over the year.
Anti-corruption squad chief Robert Lafrenière said Tuesday the results are encouraging.
With the addition of a Montreal-police based anti-corruption unit, UPAC now has 320 employees.
"The expertise that has been developed is unparalleled," Lafreniere said." "Never in Quebec has so much energy been deployed to protect the integrity of the state."