Vancouver Island man defrauded $1M from investor, BCSC rules
Vancouver Island man defrauded $1M from investor, BCSC rules
The Sooke Harbour House sign is shown in this file photo. (CTV News)
The British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) has concluded that a Sooke, B.C., man defrauded an investor of $1 million by lying to them about the ownership of a well-known hotel.
In a ruling released Tuesday, the BCSC said Timothy Craig Durkin mislead the investor by saying his company, SSH Holdings Limited, owned 100 per cent of the shares for the Sooke Harbour House hotel in late 2015 when, in fact, it did not own any percentage of the property.
Durkin then told the investor that they would own 40 per cent of the hotel if they bought 40 per cent of its shares for $2 million from SSH.
Based on misleading information, the investor provided SSH with a $1-million advance for the shares, which was later spent and never recovered by the investor, according to the BCSC.
From December 2015 to March 2016, the BCSC found, Durkin – acting as the director of SSH – made false statements about the hotel's ownership on three separate occasions to mislead the investor.
Durkin argued that he believed the investor and her advisors were aware that SSH was in the process of trying to purchase the hotel, and were not yet the owners when Durkin was trying to raise funding.
But, the BCSC found that Durkin "chose not to correct erroneous information and misunderstandings about the ownership of the hotel’s shares" in emails with the investor's accountant.
The BCSC panel pointed to one email from 2015 as the most prominent piece of evidence in its decision.
When the investor's lawyer asked if SHH already owned the Sooke Harbour House hotel, Durkin said his company did.
"Is Holdco already the sole shareholder of Opco, or will it be acquiring all of Opco's shares concurrently with GB's purchase of Holdco's shares?" reads an excerpt from an email between the investor's lawyer and Durkin.
"Already acquired," responded Durkin.
Ultimately, the BCSC panel found that Durkin was "deceitful" and that he misled the investor. The securities commission has now directed all parties to make submissions on sanctions.
The Sooke Harbour House has had a tumultuous legal history in recent years. The property has been at the centre of a legal dispute between the couple that originally purchased the property decades ago, alongside prospective buyers, including Durkin.
Civil court documents dating back to March 2020 show that a judge ruled that Durkin, alongside SHH Holdings Limited and other partners, owed the original owners of the hotel more than $760,000.
Cape Breton University has more than doubled in size by enrolling thousands of international students, and critics say the campus and community weren't ready. Watch the documentary 'Cash Cow' on CTV W5, Saturday at 7 p.m.
A new Canadian study of 4.8 million people says a daily alcoholic drink isn't likely to send anyone to an early grave, nor will it offer any of the health benefits touted by previous studies, even if it is organic red wine.
W5 profiles the man who makes the sounds for breaking bones and squealing tires in Hollywood’s biggest films; and he does it from a small town in Ontario. Watch 'Sound Farms' at 7 p.m. on CTV W5.
Statistics Canada has released its new report about the Canadians level of confidence in Canada’s institutions, finding that recent immigrants are more likely to express confidence in the media and parliament.
In a choice forced upon them by the Canadian government, four mothers have made the agonizing decision to forfeit an opportunity to repatriate their children from open air prisons in northeast Syria.
Lawyers representing Toronto MP Han Dong served Global News with a libel notice on Friday over reports that alleged he spoke to a Chinese diplomat in February 2021 about delaying the release of the two Michaels, and that he was a 'witting affiliate' of Chinese interference networks – allegations that Dong denies.
A recent report from Royal LePage is predicting a drop in prices for Canadian cabins and cottages this year as demand softens from economic uncertainty and low housing stock.
Officials in Vancouver said they plan to meet with the artist and volunteers who are keeping vigil on a children's shoe memorial on the steps of the city's art gallery in an effort to end the tribute to children who didn't return from residential schools.
The leader of Ontario's new democrats says she's removed long-time party member Michael Mantha from caucus amid an independent investigation into alleged workplace misconduct.
In one day, Ontario midwife Manavi Handa saw three patients who will have to pay thousands of dollars to be able to schedule a C-section beginning on Sunday.
The United Conservative Party (UCP) of Alberta announced Saturday that Rajan Sawhney will run as a UCP candidate for Calgary North-West after announcing in February that she wouldn't be running for re-election in Calgary North-East.
Akwesasne Mohawk Police say they are working with Immigration Canada and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to confirm the identities of the eight migrants whose bodies were pulled from the St. Lawrence River this week.
April Fools' Day -- better known as poisson d'Avril in Quebec -- is upon us. Some of the province's familiar faces got into the spirit Saturday with a few light-hearted social media pranks.
After the RCMP commissioner admitted he didn't read the Mass Casualty Commission’s final recommendations, family members of those killed in the April 2020 tragedy say they have doubts the force will change.
Cape Breton University has more than doubled in size by enrolling thousands of international students, and critics say the campus and community weren't ready. Watch the documentary 'Cash Cow' on CTV W5, Saturday at 7 p.m.
A doctor named in a lawsuit after a Nova Scotia woman died in hospital following a long wait to see a physician has denied allegations from the family that he failed in his duties.
The sale has started of former Saskatchewan government liquor store buildings. The province got out of liquor retailing earlier this month and is disposing of all assets.
In an attempt to take pressure off hospital emergency rooms, the Saskatchewan government will offer a bump in pay for family doctors who work later hours.
Tourism Barrie brought a report from a consulting firm to council, recommending upgrades to the arena, including additional seats, modern concessions, and an open grand entrance on the building's north side. The proposed renovations would cost approximately $40 million but could bring significant economic benefits to the city.
Sigfrid Stahn walked out of the Barrie courthouse Friday a remorseful man one day after a jury found him guilty of impaired driving, causing a collision on Highway 12 in July 2020 that killed a 77-year-old Midland man.
In an attempt to take pressure off hospital emergency rooms, the Saskatchewan government will offer a bump in pay for family doctors who work later hours.
Kevin Garinger says it feels like the passage of time is inexplicable. The five years since a deadly bus crash changed his city, his hockey team and his life sometimes feel like a lifetime. Other times it feels like yesterday.
Cape Breton University has more than doubled in size by enrolling thousands of international students, and critics say the campus and community weren't ready. Watch the documentary 'Cash Cow' on CTV W5, Saturday at 7 p.m.
A northern Ontario man has been banned from licenced hunting and fined $5,000 after pleading guilty to having more than six times the legal limit of grouse and obstructing conservation officers.
The Sooke Harbour House sign is shown in this file photo. (CTV News)
