OTTAWA, November 1, 2004 -- The Competition Bureau announced today that charges have been laid against a Pickering, Ont., man for his involvement in an alleged fraudulent scheme of pyramid selling. Stalin McIntosh, president of a multi-level marketing company known as the Millnaires of Canada Ltd., that primarily targeted Ontario residents, has been charged under the Competition Act and the Criminal Code. The Millnaires of Canada Ltd., which operated in Toronto until December 2001, promoted and sold memberships in various pyramid schemes referred to as the Cellular Phone and Wealth Building Program of the Millnaires of Canada Ltd. The Competition Bureau alleges that from September 2000 to December 2001, Mr. McIntosh operated and promoted schemes of pyramid selling that promised participants free cellular telephones, the elimination of cellular telephone bills, vehicle payments and rent or mortgage payments. Furthermore, Mr. McIntosh was charged with knowingly or recklessly making representations to the public that were false or misleading in a material respect in order to induce people to pay to become members of the schemes as well as defrauding members of the public of money exceeding $5,000. "Multi-level marketing plans, as defined by the Competition Act, are a legal business activity, but schemes of pyramid selling are not," said Raymond Pierce, Deputy Commissioner, Competition Bureau. "It is illegal for participants in the plan to pay money for the right to receive compensation for recruiting new participants into the plan who in turn pay for the same right." Canadians should consider a number of factors before joining a multi-level marketing plan. In June 2001, the Bureau launched Multi-level Marketing and the Competition Act (http://mmprodnt.ic.gc.ca/competitionbureau/), an animated multimedia tool designed to inform Canadian businesses and consumers about the multi-level marketing and pyramid selling provisions of the Competition Act. The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency that promotes and maintains fair competition so that all Canadians can benefit from competitive prices, product choice and quality service. It oversees the application of the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Textile Labelling Act and the Precious Metals Marking Act. - 30 - For media enquiries, please contact: Maureen McGrath Senior Communications Advisor Communications Branch (819) 953-8982, or (613) 296-2187 (cell) For general enquiries, please contact: Information Centre Competition Bureau (819) 997-4282 1-800-348-5358
