Nelson Allen, former head of Nelbar Financial Corp. and IDA member Essex Capital Management Inc., was sentenced to four years in jail Monday after pleading guilty to defrauding clients.

Allen pled guilty to three counts of fraud over $5,000 back in February. A report in Tuesday’s Globe and Mail said that that Allen declined to apologize to his victims at his sentencing hearing.

The fraud was committed between 1994 and 1999. Money that was supposed to be invested on clients’ behalf was instead used to payoff other investors in Ponzi-scheme fashion, and to fund some of Allen’s personal expenses.

The presiding judge, Justice Harry LaForme said he could not issue a restitution order in the case. He added that the civil courts are the best place for them to obtain compensation, and reminded the burned investors attending the trial that a class-action lawsuit is already under way.

In July 2001, the IDA imposed a $525,000 fine on Allen for the improper activities at Essex. At the time, the penalty was the largest ever levied against an IDA member.