A new web series exploring white-collar crime in Canada has its sights set on a recent headline-grabbing saga that saw about 14,000 Ontarians bilked out of hundreds of millions of dollars.<\/p>\n
The series, Capitalisms\u2014which is relying on a GoFundMe<\/a> page to finance its production\u2014intends to focus its first season, entitled \u201cFortress,\u201d on the alleged syndicated mortgage fraud perpetrated by Fortress Real Developments, in which its two directors, Jawad Rathore and Vince Petrozza pocketed roughly 17% of $920 million raised, and the toll its taken on investors\u2019 lives. According to a news release, the season will also profile experts and whistleblowers\u2014including Ben Rabidoux who successfully fought a defamation suit by Fortress Real, albeit at a great financial cost he\u2019s yet to recoup\u2014who claim they were bullied with threats and legal intimidation.<\/p>\n Rathore and Petrozza were fined $250,000 in September by the , successor to the disbanded Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) that initiated proceedings.<\/p>\n Bryan Bakker, Capitalisms\u2019 producer and director, wants to highlight how victims of such flagrant crimes are short-shrifted by the legal system.<\/p>\n \u201cThis series, more than anything, is about exploring the disparity between the rules for the 1% and the rules for the rest of us; the Capitalisms that divide us,\u201d he said in the release.<\/p>\n David Franklin, a Toronto-based lawyer, has long been critical of the regulatory bodies he believes from the alleged Fortress Real scam, which he previously told CREW is writ large in the meagre fine the company received.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is unbelievable, how in God\u2019s name could they do that? That shows you that even FSRA isn\u2019t doing what they\u2019re supposed to be doing because there should be a major penalty,\u201d said Franklin. \u201cThe fine is a joke and it took away their credibility. It\u2019s an insult, given all the stuff that\u2019s been in the media. What\u2019s the purpose of FSRA? It encourages people to commit illegal acts because the penalty was so small.\u201d<\/p>\n