New Subpoena Brings Bridging Finance Evidence Into Criminal Case
Criminal investigations into Bridging Finance leadership continue more than five and a half years after the firm’s collapse.
Bridging leaders have been in and out of court for several years now, for a variety of reasons. For the most part, however, these have complicated bankruptcy proceedings and attempts to recover some of the money owed to defrauded investors. Most of the legal action, however, hasn’t been criminal.
Criminal investigations are continuing forward, though. The Capital Markets Tribunal authorized the OSC to release transcripts from its compelled examinations of former CEO David Sharpe, former CIO Natasha Sharpe, and chief compliance officer Andrew Mushore in connection with the criminal case against Gary Ng.
Did a Criminal Inquiry Open Over the Bridging Finance Collapse?
Some former Bridging Finance, Inc. executives face a criminal investigation into the firm’s collapse.
The Capital Markets Tribunal has approved the Ontario Securities Commission to share evidence with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice’s criminal investigators regarding Gary Ng. This comes after the Ontario Superior Court of Justice issued a subpoena in the matter.
“The tribunal issued an order authorizing the OSC to disclose transcripts of its compelled examinations of the three former Bridging executives at the heart of the regulator’s enforcement proceeding, the failed fund manager’s former CEO, David Sharpe, its founder and former chief investment officer, Natasha Sharpe, and its chief compliance officer, Andrew Mushore,” Investment Executive reports.
Multiple judgments against former leaders of Bridging Finance, Inc. have already been entered to date. The Capital Markets Tribunal found that David and Natasha Sharpe perpetrated or participated in securities-related frauds. Similarly, Mushore was found to have participated in one of the securities-related frauds.
Thus far, the only former Bridging Finance, Inc. figure to face criminal charges related to the firm’s collapse is Gary Ng. The “Bay Street Whiz Kid Who Wasn’t” was charged by the RCMP with fraud over $5,000 and laundering the proceeds of crime.
No official ruling has been made in that case yet.
Will Criminal Charges Be Brought Against Bridging Finance Leadership?
It’s not yet clear whether criminal charges will be brought against David and Natasha Sharpe, or Andrew Mushore.
David and Natasha Sharpe have previously been identified as subjects of an RCMP investigation, and all three have faced serious regulatory findings related to Bridging Finance.
The latest disclosure of OSC evidence to the Ontario Superior Court shows that information involving the former Bridging executives remains relevant to an active criminal proceeding.
That is serious and significant, but it doesn’t necessarily mean prosecutors are preparing charges against them.
A criminal prosecution would operate under a stricter legal standard than the OSC’s proceedings. To obtain a criminal conviction, the Crown would have to prove the alleged offences beyond a reasonable doubt.
For now, Gary Ng remains the central defendant in the criminal case connected to Bridging-related financing transactions, while the question of whether former Bridging executives will eventually face criminal charges remains uncertain.
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New Subpoena Brings Bridging Finance Evidence Into Criminal Case
