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by Mike Caswell

A federal judge in California has spared Ontario lawyer Ashmit Patel a jail term, imposing a probationary sentence on him for an OTC Markets scheme. The government claimed that Mr. Patel was part of a fraud with a company called VMS Rehab Systems Inc., which supposedly made specialty seat cushions. He was part of a group that boosted VMS and other listings with claims like "this stock could catapult by up to 155%" while secretly selling millions of shares.

Mr. Patel, 39, received his sentence in a morning appearance before Judge Marilyn Huff in San Diego. The judge ordered him to serve three years of probation, imposing no custodial sentence. She also ordered Mr. Patel to pay $41,953 in restitution. (All figures are in U.S. dollars.)

The sentence is a victory for Mr. Patel, who portrayed himself as a minor participant in the scheme. Ahead of his sentencing, he said that he only became involved with the fraud because he made poor decisions in choosing his associates. At the time he was a young lawyer trying to establish himself in the profession. Through his work, he "found himself immersed in ethically questionable and, ultimately, illegal activity," he claimed.

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