Anne Squires, owner of Exit Realty on the Rock, charged with theft, fraud
Police finish months-long investigation into Exit Realty on the Rock
Anne Squires, owner of Exit Realty on the Rock, has been charged.
The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary said Monday afternoon that Squires has been charged with theft over $5,000, fraud over $5,000, uttering a forged document and breach of trust.
The RNC said it has completed its "lengthy and thorough investigation into Squires and her business dealings with Exit Realty on the Rock."
Police began their investigation on Jan. 27.
Fake sales agreements
It was alleged that Squires "committed fraud against a trust account ... which she had access to through her company."
In a court document that CBC News obtained in February, police investigators wrote that they believed Squires falsified home purchase and sales agreements.
- Anne Squires under RNC investigation for theft, fraud and breach of trust
- Exit Realty on the Rock investigation expected to take at least 6 more months
Const. David Crowley, of the RNC's Economic Crime Unit, wrote that Squires faked the documents in order to get undeserved commissions from a company called Access Easy in Toronto.
The claims have yet to be proven in court.
The company filed a lawsuit against Squires in April, but in August Squires argued that a staff member at her company — not her — entered into the agreements without her blessing.
It has also been alleged that Squires also improperly took money from a trust account.
Squires, 57, was released from custody on Monday and is set to return to provincial court in St. John's on Jan. 3, 2017.
Civil actions
Squires is involved in multiple lawsuits that have been launched this year.
- Unsecured creditors 'unlikely' to see cash from Exit Realty on the Rock receivership
- AccessEasyFunds sues Anne Squires over $510K in advances
- Court documents detail Ron Ellsworth's denials in Anne Squires' loan lawsuit
The list includes a suit Squires filed against Deputy Mayor Ron Ellsworth, alleging he charged her illegal and criminal interest rates on a 2013 loan.
Ellsworth denies any wrongdoing in relation to the loan.
Exit Realty on the Rock went into receivership in February, after the provincial government pulled the company's real estate license.
With files from Rob Antle, Mark Quinn and Jeremy Eaton