On Wednesday, Sino-Forest disclosed it had received a second enforcement notice from the OSC.Peter Power/The Globe and Mail
Sino-Forest Corp., the Canada-based Chinese timber firm that collapsed under the weight of fraud allegations in 2011, says former chief financial officer David Horsley is no longer employed by the company.
Mr. Horsley was the top Canadian-based executive at the TSX-listed forestry firm and served as CFO from October, 2005, until April, 2012, when Sino-Forest was hit with enforcement notices by the Ontario Securities Commission.
In May, 2012, Mr. Horsley was one of several respondents named in a series of allegations made by the OSC. At the time, the OSC alleged Mr. Horsley had not complied with securities laws and had not acted in the public interest.
The regulator did not, however, accuse Mr. Horsley of participating in fraudulent activity it alleged was conducted by other executives, including Sino-Forest's former chairman and chief executive officer Allen Chan. Mr. Horsley had remained an employee at the company after resigning as CFO.
Late Wednesday, Sino-Forest disclosed it had received a second enforcement notice from the OSC that "adds a further allegation similar in nature," to the allegations made in May.
On Thursday, Sino-Forest said Mr. Horsley "has ceased to be employed by the company."
Mr. Horsley did not respond to a call to his mobile phone requesting comment.
Once Canada's largest publicly traded forest firm with a market value in excess of $6-billion, Sino-Forest's shares have been delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange and the company is now insolvent. It is in creditor protection administered by an Ontario court.