Millions of dollars allegedly stolen from clients were used to purchase property for a former B.C. investment agent and his wife in Naramata.

Jeffrey Scott Rutledge has been under investigation by the Canadian investment industry’s regulatory body since 2018.

Allegations include multiple unauthorized wire transfers between August 2016 and July 2018 worth an estimated $2.2 million from investment accounts belonging to his clients at the time.

Rutledge failed to appear for an interview in 2020 and has not cooperated with the investigators, according to the notice for the upcoming hearing.

Sanctions against Rutledge could include a lifetime ban on participating in the stock market as well as up to a $5-million fine.

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The property in Naramata in 2016 was purchased by Rutledge and his wife, who demolished the old house before getting a permit for a new manufactured home in 2018.

Over $1.3 million of the transfers were connected to the property, including funds transferred to an Okanagan law firm practising real estate law and to a modular home manufacturer.

Rutledge allegedly faked his clients’ signatures to authorize the transfers.

He had been in the industry since 1981, joining the Vancouver office of PI Financial Corp. in 2012, until he was fired with cause on Nov. 21, 2018.

The investigation was launched after the clients became aware of the transfers in November 2018 and informed PI Financial.

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