Three directors sentenced in Capital + Merchant Finance case

News release
15 March 2013

Three directors sentenced in Capital + Merchant Finance case

Three directors of the failed finance company Capital + Merchant Finance have today been sentenced at the Auckland High Court following action taken by the Financial Markets Authority.

Owen Francis Tallentire, Colin Gregory Ryan, and Robert Gordon Sutherland each pleaded guilty to two charges of making an untrue statement in a registered prospectus and one charge of distributing advertisements that included an untrue statement. The charges were laid under the Securities Act.

Owen Tallentire was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment. He is currently serving a five year fraud sentence following a prosecution taken by the SFO.

Colin Ryan was sentenced to seven months’ home detention, 300 hours community work and ordered to pay $100,000 reparation.

Robert Sutherland was sentenced to six months’ home detention, 300 hours community work and ordered to pay $60,000 reparation.

The reparation will be paid to the receivers.

“These sentences reflect the seriousness of the misconduct and the harm that has been caused to investors,” said FMA Head of Enforcement Belinda Moffat.

“The directors had a responsibility to disclose the precarious position that Capital + Merchant was in, but they failed to do so, resulting in investors making misinformed investment decisions,” said Ms Moffat.

Capital + Merchant Finance collapsed in 2007 owing $167.1 million to about 7500 investors.
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