Bre-X court request to dismiss investor claims held over
New court date set for Dec. 4
A court hearing that could end the Bre-X saga has been adjourned until Dec. 4 so lawyers have more time to analyze the case.
Bankruptcy trustees from Deloitte and Touche had filed an affidavit asking all class-action suits on behalf of Bre-X creditors in Alberta, Ontario and around world be thrown out.
The company is making the move because there is no money to pay them.
It has been 15 years since Bre-X was exposed as a $3 billion mining fraud when thousands of investors were duped by the company that falsely claimed to have struck gold in Indonesia.
In 1996, the small Calgary-based mining company announced that it had discovered gold deposits in Indonesia.
Shares in the company began to soar, creating millionaires out of early investors.
But when mining officials reported their findings on March 26, 1997, shareholders were stunned to learn that there was no gold.
This revelation halted trading of Bre-X shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange, causing one of the largest stock market scandals in Canadian history.