ex-B.C. lawyer Fred Sharp charged by SEC, FBI - $52.9m

Five years after he was exposed as a major Canadian player in the "Panama Papers" offshore finance scandal, Fred Sharp is now facing prosecution in the US. He had his assets frozen by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and has an arrest warrant outstanding. The offshore shell facilitator was handed a US$52.9m judgment for fraud. Sharp nicknamed himself "Bond". He is one of six BC residents charged with violating anti-fraud provisions of the U.S. Securities Act. Zhiying Gasarch, Courtney Kelln, Mike Veldhuis, Jackson Friesen, Paul Sexton and Avtar Singh Dhillon are the others.

Vancouver doctor turned stock promoter Avtar Dhillon was busted for his involvement in a $1 billion international stock fraud. In August 2021 he was arrested in Long Beach in his $12m, 9,300-square-foot, home.

In 2011, Dhillon founded pharmaceutical company Vitality Biopharma Inc. Trading in Vitality was halted in November 2018. He stepped down as the chairman, but not before the "Sharp Group" booked $16.6m in ill gained profits ... including $2.6m to Dhillon. Dhillon concealed ownership of Arch Therapeutics and OncoSec Medical Inc. Both were microcap biotechnology companies he chaired between March 2011 and April 2020.

Dhillon made false representations for millions of beneficially owned shares by putting them in two shell companies. They then reportedly had another law firm provide a legal opinion to a broker that the shares could be deposited into a brokerage account without trading restrictions.

Sharp's company, Corporate House, created more than 1,200 corporate entities, making him the most significant Canadian player in the Panama Papers leak. Sharp and his cohorts could face up to 20 years in prison, plus five years for the conspiracy charges. https://www.sec.gov/litigation/complaints/2021/comp-pr2021-148.pdf

Avtar Dhillon