Burnaby resident Adis (aka Ady) Golic has been found guilty of two B.C. Securities Act charges related to a company involving a muffler that supposedly reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 97 per cent.
On Oct. 17, Honorable Judge Joseph Galati found Golic guilty of engaging in the distribution of securities without being registered to do so.
"We call that colloquially as illegally distributing shares," said crown prosecutor Mark Canofari.
"He was attempting to raise money for a company called AD Capital U.S., and the business this company was purported to be doing was developing a muffler for cars that allegedly reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 97 per cent," added John Neal, another Crown prosecutor working on the case. "There was a company that had patents for a muffler system. Our expert was of the view that there was no scientific or technical merit to the design."
Golic's second guilty count was engaging in the distribution of securities without having filed a prospectus, a document outlining details of the business that has to be submitted with the B.C. Securities Commission, the provincial regulatory agency that enforces the laws around selling things like stocks and bonds.
Golic was acquitted on a third count of making misrepresentations and omissions while engaging in investor relations activities or with the intention of effecting a trade in a security.
The case was heard in provincial court. The trial lasted for about seven days over the course of three weeks, but the offence date was between Nov. 22, 2007 and May 1, 2008 for the charges he was found guilty of and between March 1 and May 31, 2008 for the one he was acquitted of.
In a related matter, Golic was found guilty of obstruction of justice and uttering threats against a woman who was supposed to testify against him. (He was found guilty of both counts, but one was stayed because the charges were so similar.)
According to a 2008 press release from the B.C. Securities Commission, the agency issued a temporary cease trade order against Golic (and his two related companies AD Capital U.S. Inc. and Adcapital Industries Inc.) after simultaneous raids on Golic's home and a room on Royal Oak Avenue, in Burnaby, where 10 people were allegedly promoting securities to potential investors over the phone.
Golic, who sings in a band called Skard, was featured in the NOW on March 19, 2011, for his fundraising efforts to help a Langley family with a young girl suffering a heart condition.
Golic was happy to be partially acquitted.
"I love it," he said, still maintaining his innocence. "I didn't do anything wrong. It wasn't my fault because the lawyer didn't file everything properly, and I paid him to do so."
Golic's next court appearance is Nov. 7, when a sentencing date will be scheduled.
