Calgary man convicted in multimillion dollar Ponzi scheme sentenced to 10 years
Court sketch of Arnold Breitkreutz. (Damien Wood/CTV Calgary)
A Calgary man who bilked his clients out of millions of dollars in a Ponzi scheme has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for what the judge called a deliberate and large-scale fraud.
Arnold Breitkreutz was convicted in June of fraud over five thousand dollars for what the Crown described as a multimillion-dollar scheme in which investors believed they were putting money into safe first mortgages.
Court heard the money from his company, Base Financial, was instead loaned to an oil-and-gas promoter and used in a risky oil play in Texas that secured against oil-and-gas leases and equipment.
The Crown had recommended a sentence of between 10 and 12 years to send a message to others who might try a similar scheme.
Justice Colin Feasby says Breitkreutz's crime violated the trust of many of his clients, who felt a profound sense of betrayal.
He also ordered Breitkreutz to pay $3.1 million in restitution.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published August 19, 2022.
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