A group of defendants is being ordered to pay $1.3 million in damages to a woman defrauded in a fake real estate scheme.
North Vancouver resident Manjeet Kaur Sandhu is entitled to the funds because the defendants breached a verbal agreement to borrow money and use it to further a development project in Dubai, a B.C. Supreme Court judge has ruled.
According to a written ruling published Aug. 6, Meera Virk and Kuldeep Virk must repay Sandhu’s principal investment of $600,000, made in 2016, as well as accrued interest and extra damages for the harm the financial loss had caused her.
Actions against other defendants in the case – Georgeta Donici, Rohita Pannu, Rohita Pannu Law Corporation, and Ranbir Singh Chahal – have been dropped, after Sandhu was paid $330,000 by those parties, said Justice Richard Fowler in the ruling.
Sandhu, a single mother and nurse at Lions Gate Hospital, met the Virks through her brother-in-law, who vouched for Meera’s trustworthiness in running an investment company called Hope Capital Investments, the court heard.
Throughout their interactions, Meera “repeatedly” used her Sikh faith to encourage Sandhu to invest money in a construction project in Dubai. Sandhu loaned the Virks $600,000 at an agreed annual interest rate of 10 per cent.
The amount was given via several payments in 2016, which were accompanied by promises to Sandhu that the project was nearing completion and promissory notes to repay the debt and interest.
Despite continuing to promise repayment, the Virks have repaid none of the principal debt nor interest. As a result, Sandhu has been financially and emotionally damaged by the Virks, Fowler said.
“On the other hand, the Virks have not been investigated by the police or punished in any way from the fraudulent scheme they used to deceive Ms. Sandhu of $600,000,” he said.
But the Virks have not defended the action in any way, and did not appear in court during the trial.
As recently as April 6, 2025, the Virks have confirmed by email to Sandhu’s lawyer that they received $600,000 from her and have again said they will “return the funds,” the judge said.
Fraudsters had defaulted on two private mortgages, judge says
Fowler said the facts of the case clearly established the Virks have breached their verbal agreement to borrow money for the Dubai project – which didn’t exist – and repay Sandhu.
The judge added he had “no hesitation” in concluding the defendants committed civil fraud.
“The evidence discloses that [Meera] made numerous false statements to Ms. Sandhu to encourage her to lend or invest her money,” Fowler said.
That fraudulent behaviour included Meera making false claims that she was a successful business person. Also, within days of receiving the last payment from Sandhu, the Virks were judged to have defaulted on two private mortgages and owe more than $1.6 million, Fowler said.
Based on the accrued interest on Sandhu’s initial payment, the judge awarded her a total of $1.14 million – less the $330,000 from the other four parties. Therefore, the Virks must pay Sandhu $811,000 plus post-judgment interest, Fowler said.
He also ordered them to pay an additional $165,000 in aggravated and punitive damages.
“The plaintiff was extremely vulnerable,” Fowler said. “The Virks appear to have been highly skilled at exploiting that vulnerability. Although the police were notified, no charges were ever filed. The Virks’ conduct has therefore gone unpunished.
“I am satisfied that an award of punitive damages is necessary to deter and denounce what the Virks did to Ms. Sandhu and to ensure that there has been retribution,” he said.
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