A former real estate developer and former lawyer are in police custody after being arrested in a $30 million real-estate fraud investigation that took several years to complete.
Tarsem Singh Gill and Martin Keith Wirick are charged with theft and fraud. The two Vancouver-area men have been released on bail until a court appearance September 15th.
RCMP "E" Division spokesperson Sgt. Susan Green says the offences occurred between 2000 and 2002 in relation to 107 separate real estate/mortgage transactions.
It is alleged the pair misappropriated funds that were allocated to discharge titles on real estate transactions.
The scheme meant people later found out they did not have proper title to the homes they had paid for.
Green says the pair face several charges that also include using forged documents and possession of stolen property.
The Law Society of B.C. says the investigation is the largest audit and investigation it has ever undertaken. The group was forced to raise its annual dues collected from lawyers to cover the fraud.
In a written statement, President John J.L. Hunter says the Law Society is satisfied with the criminal charges laid against Wirick - whom they disbarred in 2002 after receiving information about the "misdirection of funds."
They have since paid out nearly $40 million in compensation to people and organizations affected by the fraud,
"As a result of the actions of the Law Society and its members, not one of the hundreds of these innocent homeowners lost their homes," said Hunter.
Wirick declared bankruptcy in 2002.
