The Alberta Securities Commission has ordered the chair of Sea Sun Capital Corp. to pay a penalty of $225,000 for illegally trading and distributing the company’s securities.

On Tuesday, the ASC announced the penalty against Rodney Koch, along with a 25-year director-and-officer ban on Koch, orders for him to cease trading securities, and a decision to deny him the use of Alberta securities exemptions for 25 years.

The ASC panel also permanently banned trading in Sea Sun Capital securities and banned Sea Sun Capital from trading in any securities. It also imposed a six-year director-and-officer ban and a $25,000 administrative penalty against former Sea Sun Capital president and chief executive officer Graham Millington.

These orders follow the ASC panel’s findings that, between 2003 and 2007, millions of dollars were illegally raised from the sale of securities relating to a marine tourism operation without registration, prospectus or appropriate exemptions.

The ASC panel stated that Koch, Sea Sun Capital and Millington, “raised a large amount of money from many investors, over a prolonged period, contrary to some of the most basic elements of Alberta securities laws.”

Investors who testified during the April 2009 hearing had made multiple investments in Sea Sun securities, and had each lost tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. All of the investors had direct contact with Koch, according to the panel.

“Our sanctions must be such that others, who might otherwise be tempted to emulate (them), perceive that the consequences can be sharp and serious,” the panel said.

IE