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Ottawa Protest- Parliament Hill, Ottawa Our third protest took place in Ottawa, October 18, 2019. Will the government increase funding to fight White Collar Crime? Many thanks to those who came out to support us!

How to contact us, whether you have a general inquiry, or whether you are an investor. INVESTOR / GENERAL INQUIRIES Please complete your information below and we will get back to you. If you have any project specific questions, please contact FAAN Mortgages . Thank you. Thank you. We will get back to you shortly. Send

Fortress in the News 2025 Developers found guilty of defrauding investors out of retirement savings in Barrie, Winnipeg May 28, 2025- CBC Fortress Real Developments co-founders found guilty of fraud May 28-Globe & Mail Syndicated mortgage firm co-founders found guilty of massive fraud May 30-2025 CMP 2022 Fortress Real Developments founders charged with fraud in connection with syndicated mortgage probe June 22, 2022 - Financial Post Fortress Founders Charged with Fraud June 22, 2022- Toronto Star Fortress founders charged in mortgage investments scheme June 22, 2022 - Orillia Matters Ottawa senior says he lost life savings investing with company now facing fraud charges July 6, 2022 - CTV News 2021 Former executive of troubled developer Fortress involved in new real estate company September 13, 2021 2020 FSRA Imposes administrative Penalty of $250,000 on Fortress Real Development Inc. September 19, 2020 Planned web series to shine light on alleged Fortress Real scam December 29, 2020- Canadian Real Estate Magazine 2019 Victims cry foul over Fortress Real rewards June 13, 2019 Mortgage Broker News No retirement for 73 year old investor June 11, 2019 Mortgage Broker News 'I still feel ashamed'; investors' life savings held in limbo Jan. 11, 2019 Barrie Today 2018 Lenders to seize 13 real estate projects Oct 25, 2018 Globe and Mail RCMP raid 6 locations in GTA as part of syndicated mortgage fraud Apr. 13, 2018 CBC.ca Canadian police search Fortress office in mortgage fraud probe: sources Apr. 3, 2018 Reuters Trustee to take over Fortress broker in wake of RCMP raid Apr. 20, 2018 The Globe and Mail Fortress investors could face 'significant losses' Jun. 24, 2018 The Globe and Mail Allegations of inflated property values at centre of RCMP syndicated mortgage fraud investigation Jul. 19, 2018 CBC.ca Fortress misled investors about land valuation, RCMP alleges Oct. 21, 2018 The Globe and Mail RCMP allege obstruction in Fortress fraud investigation Oct. 23, 2018 CBC.ca Inside the fall of Fortress Dec. 14, 2018 The Globe and Mail 2017 How a real estate developer's efforts to silence a critic failed Jan. 19, 2017 MacLean's 2016 The high-risk world of syndicated mortgages Apr 29, 2016 The Star Just how safe is the ‘safe’ world of syndicated mortgages? April 4, 2016, MacLean's

The Developers who partnered with Fortress Over 25 real estate developers partnered with Fortress Developments. Lamb Development Corp partnered with Fortress on 14 real estate projects. Lamb failed to repay over $47 Million to the Syndicate Mortgage investors. Developer Pie Chart

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Coming up! February 2, 2026 Sentencing Hearing Courthouse Details: Location: 10 Armoury Street, Toronto, Ontario (walking distance from subways & City Hall) Room # TBD Start Time 10 am Court is Open to the Public Tried by judge only (no jury) Zoom is not available. JOIN US! About the trial Fortress Criminal Trial R. v Rathore & Petrozza Fortress Real Developments raised more than $920 Million from thousands of everyday investors through syndicated mortgage investments. It is alleged that the company's founders misrepresented the nature and risk of these investments during sales and promotional activities, leading to significant financial losses for investors. In June 2022, following a lengthy investigation by the RCMP Integrated Market Enforcement Team (IMET), Jawad Rathore and Vince Petrozza were criminally charged with Fraud and Secret Commissions. The prosecution chose to focus on 2 projects during the trial: Sky City and Collier. On May 28, Justice D. Moore delivered his guilty verdict. The trial summary can be read here. Key dates: April 13, 2018 : RCMP executed their search warrants and production orders. June 22, 2022 : Rathore & Petrozza are charged with Fraud & Secret Commissions May 28, 2025 : Trial Commences December 3, 2025 : Sentencing Submission Hearing February 2, 2026: Sentencing Hearing Q & A 1. Who are Jawad Rathore and Vince Petrozza? Rathore and Petrozza are the founders and principals of Fortress Real Development. Rathore is the CEO, and Petrozza is the COO. Petrozza was also the principal broker for Centro/BDMC. Fortress and its affiliated brokerages raised over $920 million in syndicated mortgage investments to help fund the "soft costs" of their developments. Investors who were everyday "mom & pop" investors were led to believe the SML investments were secure and low risk. In total, over $900 million was raised from all syndicated mortgage investments. Thousands of investors have lost their life savings investing in Fortress SMLs. 2. Why are they being tried in a criminal court? Rathore and Petrozza were criminally charged with Fraud and Secret Commissions after a lengthy RCMP investigation. It is alleged that the founders of Fortress Real Developments engaged in fraud by orchestrating an ongoing scheme whereby they did not disclose the various risks to brokers and investors of syndicated mortgages. The Crown later chose to focus the trial on the fraud charges. 3. What is a syndicated mortgage? A syndicate mortgage is a group of individuals who lend money privately to a borrower to finance real estate developments, such as residential condo buildings. In the case of Fortress Real Development Inc, loans were secured against a major development proposal known as a Syndicated Mortgage Investment (“SMI”).These funds were primarily to finance the ‘soft costs’ of a real estate development. They are also referred to as Syndicated Mortgage Loans (SML) as the investors in effect leant money to the borrower (developer). 4. Is zoom available for this trial? Unfortunately there are technical issues that prevent the trial from being shared over zoom. If you are able to attend in person, there are many TTC options for those of you in the GTA. Please go to the Trip Planner site for assistance. https://www.ttc.ca/trip-planner 5. What should I expect at the courthouse? What can I bring? Please refer to the courtroom guidelines and etiquette. 6. Which projects are the focus of the trial? Even though Fortress raised money for over 70 projects, (there were about 45 at the time of the RCMP raid), the RCMP narrowed their investigation on Collier, Crates Landing/South Shore, Harmony Village & Sky City. 7. Who is the prosecutor? It is crown attorney Scott Patterson. 8. Who is the defence? Gerald Chan for Vince Petrozza, and Scott Fenton for Jawad Rathore. CBC Developers found guilty of defrauding investors out of retirement savings in Barrie, Winnipeg Read More Global News Fortress Real Developments co-founders found guilty of fraud Read More Investment Executive Fortress pair convicted on fraud charges Read More

VOSMI is an information & resource website for Fraud Victims of Syndicated Mortgage Investments, related to Fortress Real Development Syndicated Mortgages. VOSM I is a non-profit group formed by victims of the largest mortgage investment fraud in Canada's history. We are the individuals directly impacted by the Fortress Real Developments Inc syndicated mortgage fraud, coming together to share information, raise awareness, and support one another. Fortress Real Developments raised over $920 million in syndicate mortgage investments from 14,000 "mom & pop" investors between 2008 and 2017, to help finance over 50 development projects. Investors were led to believe these were safe, low risk investments. After a lengthy and complex investigation which began in 2018, the RCMP charged the principals of Fortress on June 22, 2022 with Fraud and Secret Commissions. On May 28, 2025 the duo were found guilty of fraud. They were each sentenced to 5 years in prison, and served a fine. Read here for further details on the sentencing.Rathore and Petrozza are appealing the decision while they are currently on bail. Guilty of Fraud Read More Vince Petrozza and Jawad Rathore were the co-founders of Fortress Real Developments. Fortress partnered with over 25 real estate developers on over 50 projects. Read the timeline to learn more about the Fortress Syndicated Mortgage scheme. Timeline "I find beyond a reasonable doubt that they both intentionally misled investors about the value of their secured interest in order to induce them into investing." Justice D. Moore FORTRESS TRIAL R. v Rathore & Petrozza The Real Numbers 14,000 investors The number of Canadians that invested in Fortress Real Developments syndicate mortgage loans $920 Million The total amount raised by Fortress Real Developments from the syndicate mortgage investors $420 Million Total funds lost to date by the Fortress syndicate investors.

October 4, 2019 Protest-Legislative Assembly, Toronto Protest at the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, Queen's Park, Toronto. The protest took place to highlight the following: Increase Public awareness of the Ontario Regulators’ Failure to Protect the public with respect to Syndicated Mortgage Investments (which impacted Investors across Canada) Warn the Public they too shall become Victims of Fraud unless the Regulators radically change their processes, investigations & penalties by being proactive in intercepting perpetrators vs reactive & complaint based. Demand increased Funding for the Police to investigate White Collar Crime. Increase Public’s awareness of VOSMI, encourage investors to come forward & join our group Highlight that the Liberals, Progressive Conservatives, & the NDP have done nothing to show support or advocacy for 16,000 victims of Fraud. (14,000 Fortress Victims & 1600 Tier 1 Victims) Huge thanks to Roy Long from the Green Party, who took the time to speak to the investors about his concerns over white collar crime, specifically on seniors. Over 80 members attended the Queen's Park protest! Since Andrew Scheer was in the vicinity, we marched over to his bus, hopping to voice our concerns. We waited over 2 hours meet him- however he snuck through the back door.

Sentence On February 2, 2026, Justice D Moore delivered his sentence to Rathore & Petrozza. Each are to serve 5 years in prison Each to pay a fine in lieu of forfeiture of $12.2 million payable within 10 years following release from custody A further 5 yrs in prison in default of fine payment A DNA order A 10 year prohibition order pursuant to s.380.2 of the Criminal Code It is unknown at this stage if there will be any restitution for the investors of Collier and Sky City Reason for sentencing read here . Sentencing Submission Hearing December 3, 2025 What is a sentencing submission hearing? A sentencing submission hearing is where the Crown and defence lawyers argue for different penalties after a guilty plea or conviction, presenting aggravating/mitigating factors, while judges consider these arguments, Victim Impact Statements , and reports (like Pre-Sentence Reports) to decide a fit sentence, which can range from fines to jail, often following joint submissions in plea deals or occurring later for more complex cases The following is a Summary of the Sentencing Submission Hearing that took place on December 3, 2025. We would like to thank those who attended in person. The courtroom was standing room only - another room had to be made available due to the overflow. This summary is not an official court transcript. The sentencing will be delivered on February 2, 2026. CROWN SUBMISSIONS Crown counsel Scott Patterson opened by stating that “Rathore and Petrozza’s legacy is that of deceit and greed.” He recommended that each defendant serve 10 years in prison, along with: Either a restitution order for the remaining loss of $26 million ($13M per defendant), or A fine in lieu of forfeiture, requiring the defendants to repay the outstanding amount; failure to pay the fine would result in the defendants returning to custody for an additional term, And a prohibition order under s. 380.2 of the Criminal Code prohibiting them from obtaining, seeking, or continuing any employment or volunteer role that involves authority over another person’s money, real property, or valuable security. After outlining the Crown’s position, Patterson read the Victim Impact Statements from the investor witnesses. He also submitted the Community Victim Impact Statement, which echoed many of the same themes and harms described in the individual statements. The Community Victim Impact Statement can be read here. "Rathore and Petrozza’s legacy is that of deceit and greed”. Scott Patterson Crown Prosecutor Aggravating Factors Identified by the Crown 1. Magnitude of the Fraud – $35 million* Supported by four independent sources: 1. Affidavit of Daniel Sobel, Managing Director, FAAN Mortgages Inc. ( trustee with full access to BDMC records) 2. Tranche schedules listings of all investors 3. RCMP Cpl. Yu’s financial analysis 4. RCMP Cpl. Laroche’s files of all investor forms and data confirming LTV language throughout 2. Material Deceit Security and LTV were central promises to investors. Misrepresentations appeared in sales decks, 9D/FSCO forms, investor training, and promotional materials. The “Real Security, Real Returns” slogan provided false assurances. Personal assurances were made by Rathore & Petrozza to witnesses; ILA was paid for by Fortress. Fortress targeted “mom and pop” investors seeking safe, secured mortgages. 3. Causation and Knowledge Both defendants knew the true “as-is” values. Mortgaging reached 300% LTV, far beyond bank norms. Losses directly resulted from their deceit. 4. Nature of the Fraud Sophisticated, planned, and motivated by greed. Inflated valuations were deliberately sought (including from Petrozza’s cousin Felice). Marketing campaigns targeted both English-speaking and Cantonese-speaking communities. Over 800 investors were affected. The consequences were “devastating and catastrophic.” Mitigating Factor Neither defendant has a prior criminal record. Note that a total of over $80 million in SML funds were raised for both projects however the crown focused on specific tranches of Sky City and Collier to arrive at the $35 million figure. Welcome visitors to your site with a short, engaging introduction. Double click to edit and add your own text. Read More "Fortress was a legitimate business, unlike a Ponzi scheme." Gerald Chan Defence Council for Vince Petrozza Defence Submissions Defence counsel Gerald Chan , acting for Mr. Petrozza, opened the defence submissions and addressed the court on behalf of both defendants. Chan argued that the recommended sentence is “grossly excessive.” Key positions included: Fortress was a legitimate business, not a Ponzi scheme. No trust relationship existed between the defendants and investors; brokers held that duty. Many Fortress projects exited successfully. Investors relied primarily on brokers, not Rathore or Petrozza. Justice Moore challenged these assertions, noting: Witnesses testified they trusted both defendants directly. Rathore and Petrozza participated in sales presentations and broker training. Defence Position on Fraud Amount & Sentence Defence argued the fraud should apply only to the five investor-witnesses, avoiding the mandatory minimum. A conditional sentence with repayment to only those five witnesses, Or, if the fraud applies to all investors (> $1M), a reduced sentence of 3–5 years. Additional Defence Arguments No intention to cause loss-at worst “recklessness.” Many projects were successful; therefore, the model “worked.” There was a level of risk Appraisals were based on a “credible method,” not intended as “as-is” values. The developer (Mady) was responsible for the failures. FAAN’s affidavit should not be relied on; RCMP Cpl. Yu’s tracing was “unreliable.” There was not an element of secrecy. Absence of causation-no direct link that Rathore & Petrozza caused the loss to the investors. Claimed the defendants injected their own funds to save the projects. Defendants have no prior criminal record. "But where did all the investors money go?" Justice Daniel Moore Justice Moore responded with several points, and raised several questions, including: Security is supposed to protect the principal. If there is no security, the principal cannot be recovered. Investors supplied all equity and bore all risk, where the developer Mady did not put up any equity and had a 50% stake in the project. Asked the Defence whether there is any evidence of expenses Mady and Fortress incurred? (The defence replied "no".) Sky City began and remained a parking lot; no value was created. Where did all the investors' money go? What about priority? Were they (Rathore & Petrozza) behind or ahead of investors? (Defence was going to “check”) Security was eliminated through inflated valuations. Personal Circumstances Raised Letters of Support for Petrozza Chan presented two letters of support from Petrozza’s family members. One from his wife, and another from his father. Petrozza is 50 has 3 children. His parents are elderly and hopes to care for them as well as his extended family. It was also noted that Petrozza's early career was with Scotiabank. (note that Chan conveniently failed to mention his previous business with Rathore, Phoenix. Rathore & Petrozza were banned for life from dealing with Securities due to a stock manipulation scheme from 2007-2009 and were fined $3 million.) No Restitution Defence provided no restitution proposal for Petrozza No Fine in Lieu of Forfeiture Defense argued that: Forfeiture should be based on what defendants personally gained, not investor losses. Claimed defendants lacked full control over the funds. Repeated that constable Yu’s information is unreliable on criminal sentencing or liability. Justice Moore responded with several points, and raised several questions, including: There is no other suggestion that there were other operating minds of Fortress other than Rathore & Petrozza? The defense replied “No”. Tranche schedules are accurate, registered documents. “ What about tranche schedules? Are you saying that I can’t rely on the tranche schedules- that means Fortress didn’t get that money? Where would the money go?” The defence responded: “What did they receive personally is my submission. The test is what came into the offender’s possession or control.” The judge responded: “ Aren’t they in control of the company?” Prohibition Issue Defence argued that would be an issue as they would not ne able to seek gainful employment and stated “ This is not a case where the defendants handled the victims funds.” Distinguishable? Justice Moore asked Chan if the defendants are distinguishable in relation to a fine or restitution, and the sentence since profits were split 80% Rathore and 20% Petrozza. Chan responded that it should be the same sentence/fine for both. "Fortress was a lawful and successful business, and that in no way was it a scam." Scott Fenton Defence Council for Jawad Rathore Read our Fortress Project analysis here. B ased on court and trustee records the total loss to date to investors is $420 Million. Is this success? Defence counsel Scott Fenton Defence counsel Scott Fenton, acting for Mr. Rathore, continued with the defence submissions and stated that he adopts Chan’s positions. He stated that his client maintains his innocence and has respect for the court, and that Rathore feels badly for the investors losing their money. Fenton raised several factors: Fortress was a lawful and successful business, and in “no way” a scam. He added that: Rathore & Petrozza deserve recognition for the projects that were successful. Fortress had a standard financing model where they would get SMLS (investors money) for the soft costs. It was not a Ponzi scheme, and unfortunately those projects failed. The Judge asked: “Did they all have a model where the developer got 50% with no money down?” (No answer from Fenton). Defence continued: Rathore genuinely wanted the projects to be successful and pay back the investors. SML’s were not safe, & that they were speculative. Investors were told their loan ranked no more than 2nd, subordinated by construction loans. The judge asked: “Did you not see the promotional material and forms?” . Fenton replied: “OK, the form had a mistake. I’m saying it’s relevant to moral culpability.” Fenton continued: “How does the court sentence Jawad and Petrozza when most of the projects were successful?” The Judge replied: “When you’re dealing with people investing in mortgages, the value is important if the project doesn’t work.” Singular feature between Collier and Sky City was Mady, the developer, as Mady went bankrupt. The judge asked “Don’t developers invest capital in the project they’re building?” "Did you not see the promotional material and forms?" Justice Daniel Moore View examples of the Fortress Promotional Material here About Jawad Rathore & his family Jawad is 49. Has no criminal history. Although Fenton did not produce any letters for Rathore, he explained that Rathore has 6 young children, 3 of which have learning disabilities, and their mother has an auto-immune disease. He also has elderly parents (mother has early-onset dementia). No Submissions for Repayment for Jawad Rathore Fenton was asked by the judge if Rathore has any submissions for Rathore’s ability to repay the victims.Fenton stated he has no submissions for repayment. Crown Closing Statements Patterson emphasized: There was a breach of trust: the defendants created the business model and financing scheme. They knew opinions of value were not “as is”. They withheld the truth and lied directly to their investors. There is a direct line between their activities and the risk.They told the LTV was never to exceed 80%. They knew it was not secure, and mortgaged loans up to 300%. Investor losses stemmed directly from the defendants’ actions, not from Mady. Rathore & Petrozza controlled the flow of investor funds.FAAN’s records are consistent and corroborated. Statement by Jawad Rathore Rathore spoke briefly (without addressing victims): “I’m speaking on behalf of myself and Mr Petrozza. Vince and I started this business 16 years ago. We always had the best intentions for all stakeholders. When we took projects it was with intentions of them being successful. We just wanted to share with the court that we had the best intentions. We appreciate the opportunity”. Next Court Date Sentencing is scheduled for February 2, 2026. The court will attempt to make Zoom available. More details to follow.

September 13, 2019 We held our first protest on September 13, 2019. The participants included Fortress investors, as well as Tier 1 investors, seeing as investors from both groups were failed by the regulators of Ontario. 80-100 protestors attended! But we won't stop there. Our next process is scheduled for October 4th, 2019 at Queen's Park. Read Nick Boisvert's CBC article here .

Regulators in the news 202 0 FSRA Imposes administrative Penalty of $250,000 on Fortress Real Development Inc. September 19, 2020 2018 Ontario watchdog revokes licence of Fortress' lead mortgage broker Feb 2, 2018 Financial Post FSCO reaches $1.1 million settlement over syndicated mortgages Feb. 2, 2018 Financial Post Regulators leave Fortress investors exposed to mortgage industry Dec. 16, 2018 The Globe and Mail Fortress investors call for restitution from regulator Dec. 17, 2018 The Globe and Mail 2017 The lax oversight of syndicated mortgage is hurting Ontario investors with little relief in sight April 24, 2017 Financial Post Canada regulator ignored warnings on risky mortgage investments Nov 30, 2017 Reuters 2016 Regulators put syndicated mortgages in their crosshairs Nov , 2016, MacLeans Ontario urged to boost financial protection for consumers June 20, 2016 The Star