A former law dean at the University of Manitoba who was the subject of a Canada-wide arrest warrant for fraud has been arrested in France, police have confirmed. A spokesperson for the Winnipeg Police Service confirmed to CTV News that Jonathan Black-Branch, 64, has been arrested in France “as a result of an extradition request.” Police spokesperson Const. Stephen Spencer said the extradition process is ongoing and that the matter is currently before the French court system. “We are not in a position to provide further information regarding the extradition proceedings while the matter remains before the courts,” the statement reads in part. “Further information will be provided should the extradition application be successful and Black-Branch be returned to Winnipeg.” He could not confirm when Black-Branch was arrested. The WPS previously said a Canada-wide arrest warrant was issued for Black-Branch on March 30, 2026 on a charge of fraud over $5,000. Black-Branch served as law dean at the University of Manitoba from 2016 to 2020, in a role originally intended as a five-year term. An internal investigation, prompted by a complaint, found that he had misappropriated more than $660,000 in university funds during that period — spent on professional development programs, club memberships, accommodations and meals. The University of Manitoba sued Black-Branch in the Court of King’s Bench of Manitoba in August 2024 to recoup the funds. According to the lawsuit, Black-Branch had access to multiple University funds as dean of the law faculty, including general operating funds and faculty endowment funds, in addition to the Desautels Fund, a donor-restricted account. Court records indicate over $518,000 was spent on professional development programs between December 2017 and July 2019, including an executive MBA and executive LLM, as well as courses at Harvard University, Cambridge Judge Business School and the Yale Global Executive Leadership Program. Of that total, $472,281.52 was charged to the Desautels Fund, in what the university alleges was a breach of both university policy and the agreement governing that fund. Upon discovering the missing funds, the university said it replenished the depleted endowment account through self-insurance so that its purpose and students would not be affected. The lawsuit also claims Black-Branch caused the university to pay $75,000 to a nuclear disarmament non-profit where he served as president of the board of trustees, charging the payment to a separate university fund earmarked for law programs and staffing. The lawsuit alleges he avoided oversight by routing the fee payments through a different approval system than the one his direct supervisor would review, then signing off on the payments himself using his own authority within the Faculty of Law. Black-Branch’s employment was terminated in July 2020, and at some point, he left the country. The University of Manitoba was granted default judgment in May 2025 for $679,269.98 plus legal costs, bearing interest at three per cent per year. In a statement to CTV News following news of the arrest, the university said it “is grateful for the work of international and local police agencies on this case,” adding that “the process to secure payment of the judgment is ongoing.” The university previously said it has since strengthened its financial oversight and accountability measures, including a new fraud-reporting policy, a mandatory ethics course for staff and faculty, and quarterly audits of deans’ expenses. Black-Branch whereabouts previously unknown: court filings Court documents filed by the University of Manitoba’s legal counsel list Black-Branch’s last known address in Oxford, England. A UK-based process server hired to serve him with the lawsuit was unable to locate him there, or at another England property he may own, according to the filings. An affidavit sworn in December 2024 says a neighbour believed Black-Branch had relocated to Switzerland, citing a call placed from a number with a Swiss area code and another resident’s account that Black-Branch had left for Switzerland with no return date given. The filings stated there was “some suspicion” Black-Branch may have been in Switzerland, but that his address remained unknown at the time, and attempts to reach him by email and phone had been unsuccessful. Before joining the University of Manitoba, Black-Branch had taught and worked in several countries, including Switzerland, Denmark and the U.K., according to a University of Manitoba faculty profile archived via the Wayback Machine, which is no longer accessible online. He was also awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal, according to the profile, for “worth and devoted services to the community.” Disbarred in Manitoba, England and Wales Black-Branch was disbarred by the Law Society of Manitoba in February 2024 after a discipline panel had found him guilty of professional misconduct and conduct unbecoming a lawyer. The panel’s underlying findings, issued Dec. 15, 2023, followed a hearing that began that September, which Black-Branch did not attend. Over the hearing dates between September and November 2023, he sought repeated last-minute adjournments, citing what he described in emails as a “chronic condition” involving depression, anxiety, panic attacks and what he called “bouts of paranoia” that he said predated his move to Winnipeg. The panel denied each request, finding the supporting medical documentation fell short of an actual diagnosis or prognosis, and proceeded to hear the case in his absence. Black-Branch was also disbarred by the Bar Standards Board for England and Wales, after a tribunal found all five charges against him proved, including that he failed to disclose the Manitoba proceedings to his U.K. regulator. According to the written decision, Black-Branch did not appear or was not represented at the hearing. The tribunal concluded his conduct amounted to “blatant and sustained dishonesty.” CTV News has also contacted the RCMP for information. Manitoba RCMP directed comment to the Winnipeg Police Service, saying it does not have any information.
