A prosecutor is asking that a 31-year-old man who pleaded guilty to taking part in a fraud and money laundering scheme that bilked several North Shore banks of half a million dollars be sent to jail for almost two years.
Crown counsel John Neal asked for the sentence after Ian Anthony Gillis pleaded guilty in North Vancouver provincial court to three charges of fraud and one charge of money laundering in connection with a scheme to rip off several banks on the North Shore in 2012.
The scheme involved taking stolen commercial cheques for large amounts of money that originated in Toronto, forging corporate documents for the companies to open business bank accounts and depositing the cheques. Gillis would then either withdraw the cash or wire it to offshore accounts before the banks caught on.
The overall scheme, which took place at banks across the Lower Mainland, involved allegedly defrauding banks of about $2.3 million. Of that, close to $1 million is still missing.
Gillis is one of four people charged in the case. He is not alleged to be the mastermind behind the plan, said lawyers, but was recruited to take part in the scheme by a friend.
At the time - between May and July of 2012 - Gillis was in dire financial straits. Both he and his then-fiance had been laid off from their jobs and were planning a wedding. He agreed to take part out of financial desperation, said his lawyer.
Neal said Gillis took part in four of the scheme's 11 incidents, including opening accounts and depositing cheques at Toronto Dominion, Royal Bank, Bank of Montreal and ScotiaBank branches in North and West Vancouver.
The stolen cheques deposited by Gillis ranged from amounts of just over $109,000 to one for $273,000, for a total of just over $767,000.
The banks lost about $493,000 of that money, including $390,000 that Gillis wired to offshore accounts in Switzerland, Spain and Uganda before the fraud was discovered. Gillis also withdrew $36,000 in cash.
Neal said given the money laundering and large amounts of money involved, Gillis should go to jail.
Gillis's defence lawyer David Thomas asked the judge to consider a conditional sentence of 18 months to two years, to be served under house arrest.
Gillis was, "struggling with a heavy financial burden," when he took part in the scheme said Thomas.
Thomas said Gillis made "an extremely serious error in judgment" in a "desperate attempt" to pull himself out of a financial hole. "He was literally at the bottom of the pyramid," said Thomas. "He took on a substantial risk with very little reward."
Most of the cash Gillis withdrew was passed on to others, said Thomas.
Nathan Bazett Lawrence, 31, of Richmond, pleaded guilty to one charge of fraud over $5,000 earlier this summer and was handed an eight-month conditional sentence in the case.
Robert Irama, 42, alleged to be the mastermind of the operation, faces 13 charges of fraud and money laundering. He is being held in custody. A date for trial has not been fixed.
David Hanson, 31, of Vancouver has also been charged in the case but has not yet been arrested. Neal said outside of court he is believed to be outside the country.
The sentencing hearing for Gillis continues Dec. 2.
