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In March 2015, the B.C. Securities Commission handed out one of its biggest penalties ever.

Michael Lathigee and Earle Pasquill were each slapped with a $15-million fine and ordered to pay back $21.7 million raised fraudulently in 2008 from nearly 700 investors.

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They were also banned from B.C.’s investment markets.

A judicial panel of the commission — which holds hearings and makes rulings on violations of B.C.’s Securities Act — found the pair had raised millions without telling investors Alberta real estate development projects pitched through their investment club were in serious financial difficulty.

The panel also found millions raised to invest in US foreclosures had been redirected to prop up the Alberta real estate developments with unsecured loans.

Their penalty total came to $51.7 million.

The message was clear: If you violate the province’s laws meant to protect investors, you will pay.