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This article was published 4/11/2019 (326 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg man accused of sending a century-old crane company into bankruptcy after defrauding it of $4 million is now the subject of a court action to ensure he doesn’t dispose of any allegedly ill-gotten assets.

Peter Ramdath, former chief financial officer for R. Litz and Sons Company Ltd., was arrested in January and charged with fraud, theft, falsification of books and documents, money laundering, and possession of property obtained by crime. He is set to stand trial in April 2020.

Peter Ramdath, former chief financial officer at R. Litz and Sons Company Ltd.

Manitoba Justice has filed a motion seeking a court order prohibiting Ramdath and his wife from liquidating, selling or otherwise disposing of certain assets in advance of a formal decision forfeiting them to the Crown.

"The director of criminal property and forfeiture has commenced proceedings… for an order forfeiting the above noted property as proceeds of unlawful activity," the motion says. "If the property is not preserved, these proceedings could be frustrated."

A judge has already approved an interim injunction prohibiting the sale or transfer of a Tudor Crescent home and 2016 BMW sports utility vehicle owned by a named co-defendant, Stormy Lynn Wishnowski. Wishnowski is not facing criminal charges in the matter.

Other assets at issue include homes in East St. Paul and on Manitoba Avenue, a 2008 Aston Martin automobile, jewelry (including a $43,000 ring), designer sunglasses, handbags and shoes, and the contents of multiple bank accounts.

In a statement of claim filed in Court of Queen’s Bench, Manitoba Justice alleges Ramdath created and entered fraudulent invoices into Litz’s accounting system to artificially inflate the credit available on the company’s credit lines.

The statement of claim alleges Ramdath redirected 691 payments worth $3.9 million from Litz accounts to his own personal credit cards and line of credit, using some of the money for luxury international vacations and a lavish wedding at the Fort Garry Hotel.

Last month, Litz filed a statement of claim suing two auditing firms for $50 million for being negligent in not detecting the fraud.

Litz is suing MNP LLP and Deloitte LLP for "breach of duty, breach of contract, negligence, negligent representation, and/or negligent performance of service," alleging if the audits by both firms had been done properly, "they would have uncovered and disclosed the reasonably discoverable fraudulent schemes of Ramdath."

The allegations have not been proven in court and Ramdath is presumed innocent.

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca