An Alberta court has sentenced a convicted fraudster to 10 years in prison and ordered over $3 million in restitution after finding that his scheme defrauded more than 100 investors out of at least $21 million.<\/p>\n
In his reasons on sentencing, Justice Colin Feasby of the Court of Queen\u2019s Bench of Alberta cited a series of aggravating factors in the case of Arnold Breitkreutz. These included “the large amount of money involved, the duration of the fraud, the complexity of the scheme, the trust placed in Mr. Breitkreutz by victims, and the significant financial and psychological harm suffered by victims.”<\/p>\n
Breitkreutz’s company, Base Finance Ltd., told investors it was using their funds for mortgage lending but diverted the money for other uses, including funding a risky U.S. oil and gas venture and to repay other investors.<\/p>\n
Breitkreutz was convicted on June 29 for one count of fraud over $5,000. In 2019, he was banned, fined $1 million and ordered to pay $2.7 million in disgorgement<\/a> by an Alberta Securities Commission (ASC) hearing panel after it found he defrauded investors.<\/p>\n
The fraud, which spread largely by word of mouth, also harmed victims’ social standing.<\/p>\n