The OSC has fined convicted a fraudster $550k and permanently banned him from trading and holding related positions.
The Ontario Securities Commission has fined convicted fraudster Michael Chomica $550,000 and permanently banned him from trading and holding related positions.
In March Chomica was sentenced to two years in jail after pleading guilty to three counts of fraud. He admitted to being the architect of two fraudulent advance-fee schemes that targeted investors in Ontario, Europe, the U.K., Africa and Asia, as well as arranging for bank accounts, under his control, to be used in a third fraudulent advance-fee scheme that primarily targeted investors residing in the U.K.
In total, investors lost approximately $591,470 in combined U.S. and Canadian funds as a result of the three schemes.
Chomica’s involvement began around October 2009 and ran until November 2010 when the OSC executed a search warrant at his residence in downtown Toronto. At the hearing, Chomica agreed to forfeit to the Commission $2,000 in cash that was seized by staff during the execution of a search warrant on his residence and to have that amount applied towards any disgorgement order made by the commission.
Once Chomica has fully satisfied the terms of the disgorgement order, he shall be permitted to acquire and trade securities for his registered retirement savings plan, the OSC said.
