ONTARIO COURT OF JUSTICE

CITATION: Re Application for a Production Order pursuant to s. 487.014 of the Criminal Code, 2019 ONCJ 234

DATE: 2019 02 05

FILE: OPP Project Gundy

RE:

IN THE MATTER OF AN APPLICATION FOR

A Production Order pursuant to s. 487.014 of the Criminal Code

Before Justice G.P. Renwick

Considered on 04 February 2019

Reasons released on 05 February 2019

Reasons for Decision

RENWICK J.:

[1] I have read and considered the application submitted to me yesterday by Detective Constable Martin Connell of the Ontario Provincial Police Serious Fraud Office for a Production Order in the "Project Gundy" investigation.

[2] The information to obtain submitted by D.C. Connell meets all of the statutory prerequisites for the granting of the application found in s. 487.014 of the Criminal Code.

[3] I find that it is in the best interests of the administration of justice to issue the warrant for the following reasons (in no particular order):

i. There are several irregularities in the investment process involving syndicated mortgage investments of the Davies Developments as revealed in the "fourth report" of KSV Kofman Inc.;

ii. On their face, the information of the five investors ("Draper," "Adamson," "Lockhart," "Schlanger," and "Vanhevel") is compelling and credible, and corroborates the KSV report;

iii. It is suspicious that there were monies raised for 11 different development projects involving the same individuals (Mr. Singh, Mr. Davies, and Mr. Harris), yet none of the projects was ever completed;

iv. There are multiple conflicts of interest involving the principals (Singh, Davies, and Harris) in the investment fundraising and trustee processes which were not disclosed to the investors;

v. Individual investors never received independent legal advice;

vi. Individual investors appear to have been misled in material respects about the nature of their investments:

a) Investors were never advised that Mssrs. Singh, Davies, and Harris (either directly or indirectly) held a financial interest in the developments;

b) Investors were never advised that their monies may be used for other investments and/or developments;

c) Investors were improperly advised about the priority of their claims/loans; and

d) Investors were improperly advised about the value of the assets of the developments in which they were investing.

vii. I am satisfied that there is little personal or biographical core data which is likely to be contained in the records sought for production;

viii. The documents sought will likely assist investigators to learn how development projects were funded (or over-funded), exact relationships between the principals, where the invested monies were going, and whether or not unlawful business practises had in fact occurred; and

ix. There is a strong public interest to investigate potential frauds and "ponzi" schemes to determine illegality and to bring perpetrators to justice.

[4] For the above reasons, the Production Order is granted.

Released: 05 February 2019

Justice G. Paul Renwick