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by Mike Caswell

Bob Bandfield, the former B.C. dentist awaiting sentencing in New York for a massive offshore money laundering operation, has asked that the judge put him in jail for no more than five years. He says that he had no direct role in the multiple pump-and-dumps that he facilitated. He also made little money, with his business profits amounting to no more than $1-million, he claims. (All figures are in U.S. dollars.)

Prosecutors say that Mr. Bandfield, 72, was the architect of a money laundering operation that contributed to the manipulations of over 40 publicly traded companies. He helped others, including West Vancouver's Gregg Mulholland and Kelowna's Phil Kueber, launder $250-million in proceeds from those manipulations, according to the government. Mr. Bandfield pleaded guilty to the charges on May 23, 2016, just ahead of his trial. Sentencing guidelines place his jail term at up to 33 years.

As Mr. Bandfield sees it, such a jail term is unimaginably excessive for his crime. In a sentencing memorandum filed on Jan. 13, 2016, he distances himself from the pump-and-dumps, describing his role as that of a facilitator. He likens his actions to those of a person who lends an automobile to somebody planning to commit a crime. He says that he had some connection to the criminal activity, but was not directly involved.

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