14 Sep 2011

Pair in court over Belgrave Finance collapse

8:02 pm on 14 September 2011

Three men associated with the failed finance company Belgrave Finance face a total of 129 charges in prosecutions by the SFO and the FMA.

Belgrave Finance was placed into receivership in May 2008, owing some 1000 investors about $22 million in total.

Two of the men, former finance director, Stephen Smith, 43, and associate Raymond Schofield, 49, appeared in the Auckland District Court on Wednesday on the SFO charges.

A third, Shane Buckley, has yet to appear but is named in the FMA charges.

Belgrave financed commercial and residential property developments, sourcing its funds mainly from the issue of debenture stock and convertible capital notes.

The 60 charges brought by the SFO relate to more than $18 million of loans made by the company to other entities between June 2005 and March 2008.

The charges are of misrepresenting to investors how their investments would be used, and subsequently using the funds in an unauthorised manner.

The FMA accuses the three men of making untrue statements in documents offering securities to the public.

The SFO prosecutions under the Crimes Act carries a penalty of up to 10 years' jail.

The 69 charges laid by the FMA are under the Securities and Companies Acts.

Meanwhile, the SFO has laid 110 charges against seven people alleged to have taken part in a loan fraud involving the vehicle finance company, Motor Trade Finance.

All seven appeared in Auckland District Court on Wednesday.