BCSC panel confirms sanctions against former director of public company

VANCOUVER, Feb. 16, 2012 /CNW/ - A British Columbia Securities Commission panel has confirmed the expiry date of orders made against a former director of a company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V) following an appeal to the British Columbia Court of Appeal.

Andrew Gordon Walker appealed a BCSC panel decision that found he had perpetrated a fraud against Panterra Resource Corp., an Alberta corporation listed on the TSX-V.

The panel found that in February 2005, Walker, Giuliano Angelo Tamburrino, and Dale Michael Paulson caused Panterra to transfer $86,381 to Walker's law firm trust account.  They used the funds to purchase Panterra shares from other shareholders of the company.  At the time, they were all Panterra directors and were its directing mind and management. In addition to an administrative penalty of $60,000, the panel also imposed prohibitions against Walker.

The Court of Appeal allowed Walker's appeal only to the extent of requiring the BCSC panel to reconsider the expiry date of the prohibitions. It was not apparent to the Court whether the panel considered as a mitigating factor a decision made in August 2006 by the TSX-V Venture Exchange that limited Walker's ability to act as a director or officer of exchange-listed companies.

The BCSC panel ruled that the TSX-V decision did not warrant changing the expiry date of the 10-year prohibitions it made against him on October 7, 2010.

The BCSC panel's orders prohibit Walker from purchasing securities or exchange contracts, from being an officer and director, from acting as a manager or consultant in the securities market, and from engaging in investor relations activities.

The B.C. Securities Commission is the independent provincial government agency responsible for regulating trading in securities within the province. You may view the decision on our website, www.bcsc.bc.ca, by typing Andrew Gordon Walker or 2012 BCSECCOM 48 in the search box.  Information regarding disciplinary proceedings can be found in the Enforcement section of the BCSC website.

Please visit the Canadian Securities Administrators' Disciplined Persons List for information relating to persons disciplined by provincial securities regulators, the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada (IIROC) and the Mutual Fund Dealers Association (MFDA).

Learn how to protect yourself and become a more informed investor at www.investright.org

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