RCMP charge former CEO of Toronto mining company for allegedly inflating gold resources

The RCMP logo is seen in Surrey, B.C., on Thursday, March 16, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

Fraud charges have been laid against the ex-CEO of a Toronto mining company after he allegedly overstated the value of its gold deposits.

In a news release, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said its Toronto Market Enforcement Team (IMET) began investigating RPX Gold Inc., formerly known as Red Pine Exploration Inc., in 2024.

As part of its mandate to monitor capital markets activity in Canada, the investigation reviewed RPX’s corporate records and laboratory data.

The RCMP alleged that the company’s former CEO, Quentin Yarie, had altered the company’s mining assay results (a lab report that determines what metals are inside a rock and the quantity) over several years.

“RPX reported in an overstatement in their 2023 Technical Report of between 62,000 and 87,000 gold ounces in their resource,” the news release reads in part.

Once the allegations became public, the RCMP said that RPX’s stock, which is traded in the U.S. and Canada, declined “significantly.”

CTV News Toronto has reached out to RPX for a comment but has not yet received a response.

As a result of the investigation, Yarie was charged with committing fraud against RPX, fraud affecting the public markets contrary to the criminal code, and forgery.

He is set to appear in a Toronto courtroom to answer for the charged on June 5.