The Mutual Fund Dealers Association (MFDA) has ordered Gilles Robert Latour to pay a $900,000 fine and $10,000 in costs after he made off with more than $650,000 belonging to elderly or vulnerable clients. There is also some question about what happened to $151,000 of his mother's money.

Latour worked in Cornwall, Ontario and was licensed with with Equity Associates. In a decision released yesterday, the MFDA says that between May 2007 and October 31, 2014, Latour solicited and accepted at least $651,946 from at least three elderly or vulnerable clients, one of whom was age 87 and in a nursing home. The MFDA says he has failed to return or otherwise account for this money, and he has also refused to co-operate with the regulator's investigation.

Besides these three cases, the MFDA notes that Latour's 90-year-old mother was one of his clients. The regulator says that Latour's brother, who was her power of attorney, contacted Equity to obtain information about a Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC) valued at approximately $151,000 and which was listed on a portfolio statement. Equity, however, does not process GIC business. "Equity contacted the purported issuer of the GIC which confirmed there is no record of a GIC purchased," reads the decision.

MFDA staff were ultimately unable to determine the nature and extent of Latour's conduct with respect to his mother and at least four other clients or individuals. However, the hearing panel decided that there was enough evidence to warrant both a significant fine and a lifetime ban from the industry.

The police are also involved: Latour has been charged with approximately 43 offences including fraud, theft, breach of trust, obtaining an investment by false pretenses, and knowingly using a forged document.