October 17, 2008 Securities

Montréal – The Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) recently filed a request with the Bureau de décision et de révision en valeurs mobilières (BDRVM) to impose administrative penalties totalling $192,000 on BMO Nesbitt Burns Ltd., Bernard Dionne, Jean-Marc Leblond, Michel Beaulieu and Mathieu Truchon for the illegal distribution of shares of Onco Petroleum Inc. by unrestricted practice representatives registered on behalf of BMO Nesbitt Burns Ltd. at its Rimouski branch.

The AMF requested that the BDRVM impose administrative penalties of $100,000 on BMO Nesbitt Burns Ltd. for:

• failing to act with the requisite competence to ensure the protection of investors, thereby violating section 151 of the Securities Act (the "Act") by failing to adequately oversee the activities of its registered representatives at the Rimouski branch and failing to take the necessary steps to ensure that these representatives discontinued making illegal distributions.

The AMF requested that administrative penalties of $35,000 be imposed on Bernard Dionne, who was the manager of the BMO Nesbitt Burns Ltd. branch in Rimouski at the time the allegations took place, for:

• failing to act with the competence referred to under section 151 of the Act, by making the distribution of the shares of Onco Petroleum Inc. and failing to adequately oversee the activities of his registered representatives at the Rimouski branch;
• failing to act in good faith and with honesty and loyalty in his dealings with clients, thereby violating section 160 of the Act by making the distribution of the shares of Onco Petroleum Inc. without holding information on such shares and on the issuer and by obtaining the signature of investors on non-solicitation certificates;
• making a distribution of the shares of Onco Petroleum Inc. without a prospectus receipt from the AMF, thereby violating section 11 of the Act.

The AMF also requested that the BDRVM impose administrative penalties on Jean-Marc Leblond, Michel Beaulieu and Mathieu Truchon of $35,000, $20,000 and $2,000, respectively, for:

• failing to act with the competence referred to under section 151 of the Act, by making the distribution of the shares of Onco Petroleum Inc.;
• failing to act in good faith and with honesty and loyalty in their dealings with clients, thereby violating section 160 of the Act by making the distribution of the shares of Onco Petroleum Inc. without holding information on such shares and on the issuer and by obtaining the signature of investors on non-solicitation certificates;
• making a distribution of the shares of Onco Petroleum Inc. without a prospectus receipt from the AMF, thereby violating section 11 of the Act.

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

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