Former Exit Realty on the Rock owner Anne Squires pleads guilty to bilking firms

Former Exit Realty on the Rock owner Anne Squires said "guilty" four times Wednesday afternoon, admitting to counts of fraud, theft, forgery and breach of trust.

Her case was heard at Supreme Court in St. John's, but Squires appeared by teleconference from Twillingate.

While Squires entered four guilty pleas, Justice Robert Stack did not enter convictions.

The matter is due back in court near the end of June.

The Crown and defence are still working out issues related to the case, specific to the amounts involved.

They will provide an update to the court at that point, about the status of those discussions.

And sentencing could drag into the fall, with two weeks of court time set aside to hear evidence, if there is still a dispute between both sides as to the facts of the guilty pleas.

Squires admits to cheating cash from 2 companies

Squires admitted Wednesday to defrauding AccessEasyFunds, and using forged and fake sales agreements in her dealings with the company. 

AccessEasyFunds is a payday loan-style operation that advances money to real estate agents for house sales before the deals close. 

Squires also pleaded guilty to stealing from Exit Realty on the Rock — specifically, money that was supposed to be set aside in a trust account.

She had initially pleaded not guilty to all counts.

Her trial was scheduled to begin at Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court earlier this month, but the matter was set over for the Crown and her defence lawyer to wrap up discussions on a plea bargain.

Exit Realty on the Rock was a big player in the local real-estate industry before it collapsed into financial ruin more than three years ago.

Provincial regulators suspended the company's licence, and police launched an investigation into Squires a short time later.

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