PM won't punish Shory over fraud investigation
Calgary MP among 300 people named in BMO's civil lawsuit over mortgage fraud
Last Updated: Friday, May 14, 2010 | 4:08 PM ET Comments346Recommend134.
CBC News 
Prime Minister Stephen Harper says Calgary MP Devinder Shory has not been accused of any criminal wrongdoing in connection with an alleged mortgage fraud against the Bank of Montreal. (CBC)Prime Minister Stephen Harper says he won't take any action against one of his Calgary MPs who has been named in a Bank of Montreal civil lawsuit over what the bank alleges was a massive mortgage fraud.
Devinder Shory, the Conservative MP for Calgary Northeast and a lawyer, is among the 300 people, including Alberta lawyers, mortgage brokers and four BMO employees, named in the suit.
On Thursday, the RCMP and Calgary police announced they had launched a joint criminal investigation into the alleged mortgage scam and that as part of that investigation they would be speaking to the people named in the suit but not only them.
Nothing in the bank's statement of claim has been proven in court.
"The member in question is not, to our knowledge, accused of any criminal wrongdoing," Harper told reporters on Friday during a visit to Quebec. "He is involved in … a civil dispute over a private matter."
In a statement issued last week, Shory said he has done nothing wrong and will defend himself vigorously.
'Nothing to do with government business'
The bank alleges the scam, which it says took place between 2006 and 2007 and involved 14 inter-connected groups, could end up costing it as much as $30 million.
Opposition MPs went after the matter during question period in the House on Friday, accusing the government and the prime minister of dragging their feet in handling the issue.
Legal documents allege millions of dollars generate dby the scam have been transferred to such countries as Lebanon, India, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan. "Certainly, the Bank of Montreal regards this [matter] as serious and credible," Liberal MP John McKay of Scarborough said. "The RCMP and the Calgary police regard it as serious and credible; the Law Society of Alberta regards it as serious and credible.
"The only person who seems to think this is not serious and credible is the prime minister. When will the member from Calgary Northeast be removed from this Conservative caucus?"
"That member's question is neither serious nor credible," Ontario Tory MP Pierre Poilievre replied. "This matter is before the courts, and it has nothing to do with government business."
The police probe of the matter is expected to be long and complicated, an RCMP spokesman said Thursday.
BMO alleges ringleaders of the fraud network would buy properties at market value but convince the bank they were worth much more and subsequently obtain a grossly inflated mortgage. They would then pocket the difference.
The architects of the fraud are accused of recruiting people, mostly new immigrants, to be "straw buyers" who allowed their name to be used to obtain the mortgage on a property in exchange for a payment.
Eventually, the fraudsters walk away from the scheme, leaving the straw buyer on the hook. The bank is usually forced to foreclose on the mortgage.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/politics/story/2010/05/14/cgy-harper-shory.html#ixzz0o0bkMZsx
May 17, 2010 at 4:56 PM
Reading this article makes me wonder if we picked the right Prime Minister to govern a great big country like Canada. Instead of protecting every Canadian from evil such as diseases, rape, murder and financial fraud, Mr. Harper seems to be protecting his own party and members in it. Mr. Shory was alleged in participating in this mortgage scam and yet, Mr.Harper is defending him because of one word... "alleged". He believes that the bank is falsly accusing Mr.Shory. I'm not going to comment on whether Mr.Shory is guilty or not, because I believe in "Innocent until proven guilty". Time will tell the answer to that question but what I don't approve of is the way the PM handled it. This investigation is serious and is taken over by the RCMP and Calgary Police. If they think something is up, there probably is. I think the PM should have placed the member in suspension until further notice. It would have kept him out of the spotlight for a while and wouldn't have created drama. Also, it would give the member some time to reflect on issues. What really impressed me and made me feel proud was that the representative for my riding, John McKay stood up and questioned the PM's actions. He shared the same views as I did on this topic and made sure that he was heard. When he was speaking up, I felt as if he was talking for me. Although I never got a chance to vote, I'm glad that my riding chose him. In conclusion, I think better decisions could have been made on the PM's part and I really hope that Mr. Shory is proven innocent. I guess we'll just have to wait and see ...
I chose this article because not only does it teach teens about the government but it also serves a basic life lesson. The life lesson is we all make mistakes and we must learn to forgive. Obviously, Mr.Shory has done something to proke the Calgary Police and the RCMP to put their noses in this issue but I'm willing to forgive Mr.Shory. If he is proven guilty and appropriate measures are taken, I'm willing to forgive him. Many people hold grudges on people because they did something wrong but everyone makes mistakes. IF WE DIDN'T, WE WOULDN'T BE HUMANS! We make them and we learn from them and we never make the same mistake twice. It's the basic circle of life. Members of the government are only humans. They make mistakes too. They're not some almighty team from god. I think we should acknowlege this issue and just move on... Imagine the person on the other end. How bad they must feel... Media is something a good thing and a bad thing. Sure, we're informed about the things that happen in our world. However, most of those issues are negative and someone always gets hurt. And yet, we live off of tears ..