Ponzi scammer set for court appearance
A local financial planner who admitted to swindling eight clients in a Ponzi scheme over a five-year period is slated to appear on Thursday, May 10, in a Kamloops courtroom.
Ed Chieduch was charged last spring with eight counts of fraud over $5,000.
Earlier this year, the 58-year-old pleaded guilty to a single amended count covering each of the eight offences.
Details of the offences have not yet been made public, but KTW obtained a lengthy collection of court documents outlining some of Chieduch’s schemes.
In one case, he stole $100,000 from a 60-year-old woman who died before she could get the money back. When her daughter attempted to cash out, Chieduch gave her an IOU.
Another woman, who was friends with Chieduch, gave him $10,000 to invest after receiving a settlement in her divorce proceedings.
She hoped to use the money to put a down payment on a house.
When it came time to make a real-estate offer, Chieduch was nowhere to be found. Neither was the money.
Chieduch, who did business as Chieduch Financial, had his insurance-sales certification revoked in 2010, after allegations of fraud first came to light.
In a written decision to cancel his licence, the Insurance Council of B.C. described Chieduch as “an immediate risk to the public.”
In addition to the criminal charge, there is also an ongoing lawsuit filed against Chieduch by one of his victims.
Chieduch was also sued by the company from which he used to rent his Victoria Street office.
Last year, a judge ordered he pay the company $5,395.20 to cover a $2,000 loan, in addition to unpaid rent and postage bills.
The total value of the money Chieduch swindled in the eight frauds to which he has admitted has not yet been made public. It will likely come out when he’s sentenced.
The last time Chieduch appeared in court, on March 26, he pleaded guilty and was ordered to undergo a psychiatric review.
It is anticipated that review has now been completed.
It is expected a date will be set for sentencing in court on Thursday.
Chieduch remains out of custody.
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