A Calgary man who bilked his clients out of millions of dollars in a Ponzi scheme was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison and ordered to pay $3.1 million in restitution for what the judge called a “deliberate and large-scale” fraud.
Arnold Breitkreutz was convicted in June of fraud over $5,000 for what the Crown described as a multimillion-dollar scheme in which investors believed they were putting money into safe first mortgages.
Court heard the money from his company, Base Financial, was instead loaned to an oil-and-gas promoter and used in a risky oil play in Texas that secured against oil-and-gas leases and equipment.
The Crown had recommended a sentence of between 10 and 12 years to send a message to others who might try a similar scheme.
Queen’s Bench Justice Colin Feasby said Breitkreutz’s actions warranted a significant sentence.
“His fraud was deliberate, large-scale and profoundly and adversely affected the lives of many victims,” said Feasby, noting the 29 victim impact statements the court received.
