B.C. couple charged in Ponzi scheme

Edmonton police’s financial crimes unit has charged a couple with fraud and money laundering in connection with an alleged multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme.

The pair — Curtis Gordon Quigley and Kathleen Treadgold, both 56 — are jointly facing 80 counts of fraud over $5,000 and one charge of money laundering for allegedly operating a scheme that took $7.8 million from investors in Alberta and British Columbia.

The charges follow an investigation that was aided by the Alberta Securities Commission, FINTRAC, the Canada Revenue Agency and the RCMP.

“The two suspects were allegedly offering securities in the form of promissory notes to guarantee investors a set return on their investment,” Edmonton police said in a release. “The scheme was often run under the company name Group Venture Inc., and is believed to have been ongoing between October 2008 and December 2020.”

The alleged scheme was primarily run in Edmonton and Kelowna, B.C., but there were also victims in the U.S. and Australia, police noted, adding that they believe that other investors have yet to come forward.

“Ponzi schemes work on the premise of providing initial financial gain, so most victims believe the investment to be profitable and then invest additional [principal],” said Detective Linda Herczeg, in a release. “In most Ponzi schemes, some initial investors will receive a full return on their investments, and the fraudster then uses those individuals as references to convince the more skeptical investors to buy in.”

The allegations have not been proven.

The pair have surrendered to Edmonton police.

James Langton

James is a senior reporter for Advisor.ca and its sister publication, Investment Executive. He has been reporting on regulation, securities law, industry news and more since 1994.