OTTAWA – An Iroquois-based property developer who pleaded guilty to charges relating to an international yacht sale fraud scheme will be sentenced in 2023.
Edouard Bonamie, 74, was charged in December 2021 with eight charges relating to an investigation between the OPP, Ottawa Police Service, and the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation.
In May 2022, three additional charges were brought against Bonamie. One month later, he pleaded guilty to four of 11 charges against him including three counts of fraud of $5,000, and one count of uttering a forged document. The remaining charges were dropped as part of the plea deal.
Bonamie has been out on bail since pleading guilty. Details of the bail and release conditions are subject to a Section 517 public ban under the Criminal Code.
After his release on bail, properties owned by the South Dundas Waterfront Development Corporation were listed for sale. These include three waterfront parcels of land at the corner of Lakeshore Drive and Dr. Stevens Drive, and a large residential property on the east side of Doran Creek on County Road 2 east of Iroquois.
Bonamie appeared in the Ontario Criminal Court in Ottawa December 19. He will appear again on January 24, 2023 where a date will be set for sentencing.
At the time of his December 2021 arrest, the Ottawa Police Service stated that Bonamie was known to use aliases including Nicholas Bonamy, Nicholas Bomamy, Nicholas Grimaldi, and Nicholas Ives. OPS also stated that he operated the South Dundas Waterfront Development Corporation.
In 2006, Bonamie pleaded guilty to fraud and forgery charges in Saskatchewan relating to a genomics company and was sentenced to four years in prison. According to the Regina Leader-Post, Bonamie’s criminal record shows more than 60 convictions – primarily for fraud and forgery – dating back to the early 1970s.
