Quebec’s securities has launched penal proceedings against eight individuals alleging that they participated in illegal distributions, seeking fines totalling $2,155,000.

The Autorité des marchés financiers said Thursday that it has filed 123 charges against a former insurance rep, who it alleges illegally acted as a securities dealer on 64 occasions, aided illegal distributions in 53 instances, and made misrepresentations six times. The regulator intends to seek fines totalling of just over $1 million against him.

It also filed charges against seven other individuals for illegally acting as securities dealers and advisers, aiding with illegal distributions and/or making misrepresentations. The allegations have not been proven.

The AMF’s investigation was not able to determine the exact amount of the loss incurred by the 76 investors in the case, which involved a company from the Bahamas that offered between 10% and 18% interest on one- or three-year investments.