May 10, 2011 Securities

Montréal - The Autorité des marchés financiers (the AMF) has launched penal proceedings in the judicial district of Saint-Hyacinthe against Sylvain Langelier-Legault for violations in connection with illegal distributions. The AMF has filed 18 charges and is seeking fines totalling $225,000 as well as prison terms.

More specifically, the AMF accuses Sylvain Langelier-Legault of acting illegally as a securities dealer on two occasions and of aiding Gestion Placement Avenir with illegal distributions on nine occasions. The AMF also accuses him of giving an undertaking relating to the future value of an investment on two occasions and of making misrepresentations to investors on five occasions, particularly by saying that the investments were safe and made by way of savings bonds.

The AMF's investigation shows that the actions of Sylvain Langelier-Legault, a former representative in insurance of persons, group insurance of persons as well as group savings plan brokerage and investment contract brokerage, resulted in the loss of nearly $500,000 by five investors. Two of these investors have been compensated a total of $156,100 by the Financial Services Compensation Fund.

Sylvain Langelier-Legault solicited clients with whom he developed a relationship of trust during his activities as a representative. Claiming that their money would be invested in a safe investment vehicle, he convinced them to invest large amounts of money in Gestion de Placement Avenir, his own company, which was to reinvest the money in various projects. Gestion de Placement Avenir did not have a prospectus in order to distribute these investment contracts.

Sylvain Langelier-Legault was permanently struck off the roll by the Chambre de la sécurité financière in March 2011.

The Autorité des marchés financiers ("AMF") is the regulatory and oversight body for Québec's financial industry.

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