On Wednesday, the royal family sought 10 to 12 years in prison for a Calgary man who robbed clients of millions of dollars in a Ponzi scheme.
Arnold Breitkreutz, 74, was found guilty of fraud over $5,000 on June 29. This is what the King described as a multi-million dollar scheme that investors believed put money into a safe first mortgage.
READ MORE: Alberta RCMP indicts two in complex multi-million dollar fraud case
The court ruled that his company, Base Financial, was instead loaned to energy industry promoters and used in high-risk oil operations in Texas secured against oil and gas leases and equipment. .
"The royal family argues that this was in fact a state of credit," royal prosecutor Sherrie Smith said in court, while Breitkreutz said over the years that After running a successful mortgage brokerage business, he said he was "highly regarded" by many of his clients.
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Smith during his crime period from May 1, 2014 to September 30, 2015 , an investor to Breitkreutz $21.4 million as a result of his "deception".
"Fake contracts were distributed to investors and T5 (investment income tax slips) were also distributed to investors to emphasize the legality of the scheme. This case 107 of the dozen victims of the Alberta were defrauded.”
Read more: The Alberta Securities Commission , ordered Ponzi scheme operators to pay more than $4 million
Smith also sought: Breitkreutz pays over his $3.1 million in damages.
The court received statements of his 29 victim impacts. Two of his victims were in court to read them.
William Yanman and his wife invested his nearly $3 million in Breitkreutz and trusted him to invite them to barbecues and dinners.
"We will never recover from this loss for the rest of our lives. Instead of enjoying the end of life and retirement, we find ourselves suffering daily from an unparalleled loss," he said.
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He and his wife experienced guilt, shame, remorse and depression. I said I experienced
Another investor whose identity was protected by a publication ban called himself foolish for ignoring his first intuition after putting his finances and company at risk.
"Who would have believed that ignoring that disdainful sentiment would lead to the near-collapse of our business, with devastating economic consequences for all employees?" you see?" she said.
``Remember all the victims. Attorneys for Breitkreutz said his client should serve a sentence ranging from five to eight years, and any more than that would be unfair given his age.
Cale Ellis-Toddington said his client's business was uncomplicated and wealthy investors knew what they were doing.
"It wasn't a matter of trust. Looking at the investor evidence, they said, 'I don't trust Arnold very much, but the truth is, I've had great returns on my investment.'
Ellis-Toddington argued that his clients were not motivated by greed, but by trying to get their investors' money back. said. He said his clients have a low level of moral responsibility.
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But Queens bench judge Colin Feasby questioned the claim.
"Funds raised with both explicit and implicit representations that you are a mortgage broker dealing in Alberta mortgages, and put the funds into investments in Texas in a bait and switch" Isn't that an abuse of trust?" he asked.
"The other way around, he was running a Ponzi scheme and kicking things around so he didn't have to spend a day calculating."
Breitkreutz, who has been in custody since his conviction, offered a brief apology. It wasn't my intention when I took your money,' he said. However, I would like to offer my deepest condolences."
Feedsby is due to give his verdict on Friday.
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