A B.C. businessman fraudulently used investors’ money raised for a development project in Chilliwack to buy everything from jewelry to a home, according to a ruling from the B.C. Securities Commission (BCSC).
In a decision released February 11, the BCSC determined Rodney Jack Wharram began committing fraud in 2009 when he was president and a director for Falls Capital Corp., West Karma Ltd. and Deercrest Construction.
He had raised more than $9 million from investors for a golf club and townhome development in the Fraser Valley city but would withdraw funds from one company and deposit it into another to pay for his own personal expenses.
Only $4 million of that money made its way to the project’s developer before Blackburn Developments went bankrupt.
“There is no evidence of repayment,” the BCSC panel said in its ruling.
“The investors have lost all the money Wharram used for personal purposes.”
The BCSC determined Wharram and Falls Capital Corp. took $139,000 from Falls and deposited it into West Karma Ltd. to go toward the purchase of a home and sale of claims proceeds.
Wharram and Deercrest Construction also committed fraud when they took $130,000 from Deercrest and deposited it in West Karma. Wharram used those funds to go towards the purchase of a home, as well.
Wharram and Deercrest then followed this up when they took $265,000 directly from the construction company’s account so Wharram could buy his wife a ring and help her invest in a grocery store.
“There was no documentation to show how West Karma repaid this amount to Deercrest,” the BCSC ruling said.
The BCSC is expected to recommend sanctions in March against Wharram, who has not been charged in criminal court.
