June 30, 2009 Securities

Montréal – The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) has launched a penal proceeding against Bertrand Lussier in the Court of Québec (Criminal and Penal Division), district of Longueuil, and is seeking fines totalling $147,000.

The AMF filed 23 charges against Bertrand Lussier for:

• acting as a securities dealer without being registered as such with the AMF, thereby violating sections 148 and 202 of the Securities Act (the "Act") (11 counts);
• aiding, by act or omission, Millenia Hope Inc., in making a distribution of a form of investment governed by the Act, without a receipt for a prospectus from the AMF, thereby violating sections 11 and 202, with reference to sections 204 and 208 of the Act (11 counts);
• making a misrepresentation in a document or information filed with the AMF or one of its agents, thereby committing an offence under section 197, with reference to section 204 of the Act (1 count).

With respect to the offences related to illegal practice as a securities dealer and illegal distributions, the AMF is seeking fines that are double the minimum fine set out in the Act, namely, $2,000 for each offence related to illegal practice, and $10,000 for each offence related to illegal distributions. A fine triple the minimum amount set out in the Act, namely, $15,000, is being sought for the offence related to misrepresentation.

When determining the amount of the fines, the AMF considered, in particular, the respondent's criminal record and the fact that he was a financial market professional as aggravating factors.

The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) is the regulatory and oversight body for Québec’s financial sector.

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