Stephen Roehrig, who invested $757,000 in Gallowai and Bul River, and encouraged friends and CARTEL members to invest another $507,050.
do yo really think this Roehrig has that kind of cash to throw around?
CEO OF BANDERA GOLD LTD CANADIEN CROOKS!!!!!
A petition filed in B.C. Supreme Court is casting doubt on the economic viability of a massive mining project near Cranbrook in which private investors have sunk more than $220 million over the past three decades.
The petition has been filed by a dozen dissident investors in the Gallowai Bul River mining project, 40 kilometres southeast of Cranbrook. They are alleging that Edmonton promoter Ross H. Stanfield has operated the project in a manner oppressive to minority shareholders.
According to court documents, Stanfield has raised more than $220 million from 3,765 investors over the last 33 years by selling shares in his privately held companies, Gallowai Metal Mining Corp. and Bul River Mineral Corp.
The dissidents — all Alberta residents — complain that, despite the massive amount of money that has gone into the project, and Stanfield's repeated assurances that the mine is on the verge of operations, it has never actually gone into production.
In a supporting affidavit, Vancouver mining engineer Ian Smith — retained as an expert witness by the petitioners — said there is strong evidence "the deposit is not economic and will never go into production."
Ron Josephson, who is representing the petitioners, has accused Stanfield of deliberately fleecing investors.
"It's been our position for a long time ... that Mr. Stanfield had a business plan 30 years ago, which was to mine gold," Josephson said during a chambers proceeding in July. "He changed his business plan when he discovered there was no gold in the mine, and now he is mining the pockets of investors. That's his business plan."
The dissidents say they have repeatedly asked Stanfield to meet with them to explain what is happening, but he has refused.
They have asked the court to remove Stanfield from his position of authority and install four new directors to better represent the interests of non-voting shareholders. Alternatively, they recommend an inspector be appointed to review the companies' affairs, or a receiver-manager be installed to run the business.
The hearing is scheduled to start Monday before Judge Peter Leask in B.C. Supreme Court.
Stanfield has denied any wrongdoing and is resisting any attempt to limit his power. There is no affidavit response from him in the court file, and he declined to be interviewed for this story.
In an affidavit filed in Stanfield's defence, Graham Seal-Jones, general manager of the mine, said it is not uncommon for mines to take decades to get into production.
"In my view, as long as work continues to be performed, one cannot assume a mine will not go into production," Seal-Jones stated. "While the goal remains to place the mine into production, such a decision cannot and should not be made before we have a complete understanding of our ore body, including the grade of ore, the ore reserves and the tonnage."
The dissident group is led by Lester Stahlke of Edmonton, a former Lutheran pastor who runs a consulting company that specializes in corporate governance. He invested $106,000 in Gallowai in 1995.
Another member is Edmonton businessman Stephen Roehrig, who invested $757,000 in Gallowai and Bul River, and encouraged friends and family members to invest another $507,050.
Another is Russel Renneberg, a civil engineer from Sherwood Park, Alta. He invested $594,250 in Gallowai, and encouraged friends and family to invest another $1.17 million in both companies.
