Case Studies

Ms. B and her friends attended a presentation for real estate investment opportunities in the Caribbean. The salesperson explained that the investment was for a condominium timeshare located on a desirable waterfront location frequented by tourists.

Mr. H agreed to purchase a restaurant-size smoker from a private seller on Kijiji. He transferred $8,000 to the seller, via multiple authorized Interac e-Transfers. The seller had promised to ship the smoker to Mr. H upon receipt of the full payment.

Mr. C owned an automotive parts store where he employed an administrative assistant with responsibility for payroll, bank statement reconciliations, and other accounting functions. Over a period of four years, she embezzled $80,000 by writing company cheques to herself or fictitious third parties, depositing them into her personal account using her bank's automated bank machine (ABM).

Mrs. P had a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) and several other accounts with her investment firm, but was a relatively unsophisticated investor. Her husband, on the other hand, did have a good understanding of investment concepts and strategy, and regularly traded stocks in a self-directed account.

OBSI received multiple complaints over a short period about an investment firm and Mr. V, an investment advisor and branch manager. The complainants had no connection to one another other than having Mr. V as their advisor.

Mr. E held both Canadian and American-dollar denominated accounts at his bank. In March 2, he received a $26,000 USD wire transfer from a relative living abroad, made through Mr. E's bank's foreign subsidiary.

Health issues made movement challenging for Mr. A so he gave his eldest son his debit card and personal identification number (PIN) to make purchases on his behalf. Mr. A completed a joint power of attorney (POA) naming his two sons as his attorneys. Soon after, Mr. A's personal bank account was converted into a joint account with his eldest son.

Mr. Y was approached about an investment opportunity by an advisor at his investment firm who was not the person he usually received advice from.

A small business owner, Mr. D, kept his business chequebook in a locked cabinet behind a counter at his office. He was the only person who had access to the cabinet.

In early 2007, Ms. F was referred to a new investment advisor by a friend. At the time, she was 63 years old and retired. Between February and May, 2007, she invested a total of $470,000 in growth-oriented mutual funds.