Excerpt:
A Toronto businessman accused of pocketing millions in fraudulent mortgages marketed to Muslims, emptied his accounts and led investigators on "a treasure hunt" to find nearly $2 million in gold bars, a federal prosecutor told a jury Tuesday. Six years later, where the bars have gone remains a mystery for authorities.
Crown attorney Damien Frost made his opening statement at the trial of Omar Kalair, dubbed the "Muslim Madoff" by homeowners who bought into his "Shariah-compliant" mortgages that left them thousands of dollars in the hole.
Kalair, 42, holds a graduate diploma in business, was once admitted to a PhD program in economics, and has spoken at a number of international conferences on Islamic finance — once at Harvard University.