Biotech exec guilty of fraud

A jury has found ex-biotechnology player and self-described Wall Street executive William Ardrey guilty of fraud relating to his tenure with Perth-based company Phoenix Eagle.

After a trial lasting more than a month, a Perth District Court jury found 49-year-old Ardrey guilty on 18 counts of causing detriment to a person by fraud. He is due to appear before Judge Laurie Levy on April 20 for sentencing.

Ardrey was found not guilty on one similar count.

It is understood from pre-trial reports that Ardrey was alleged to have used his position to pocket $400,000 in fees he claimed had been paid to consultants.

He was extradited from Queensland in 2011 to face the charges.

Ardrey was best known for his involvement in Perth’s biotechnology sector but also had senior roles in a variety of other business around the country and offshore.

In 2003, he won a Business News 40under40 Award as president of CustomVis, a laser eye treatment business. Following that he held various roles in similar businesses, with bases in Brisbane and the US, including Regenera (which became Advanced Ocular Systems and is now IFS Construction Services), Freedom Eye (formerly Solbec Pharmaceuticals and is now FYI Resources), Acuvax and Avantogen Oncology.

He was employed as a consultant by the Phoenix Eagle board in 2005.

Australian Securities and Investments Commission records show US-born Ardrey has been on the board or held shares in numerous companies including but not limited to: Oz Sonotek, Inqbate, Opto Global Holdings, Dr Wes Holdings, Pentrys Vaccines, Quantative Medical Group and a seemingly related company Quantative Medical Group Opthalmology Investments, QMG Quest Media Group, Nova Systems Consulting, CLVR, Retmed, West Australian Institute of Skin Cancer Medicine and Rural Health as well as the similarly named WA Institute of Skin Cancer Medicine & Rural Health, Allmedic, Midwest Aero Medicqal Air Ambulance, and Suncity Air Ambulance.

His own webpage, www.williamardrey.com.au, states the following:

“Dr William Ardrey is a former Wall Street executive who turned his full attention to health care, including on site occupational health to improve safety of workers, rural and regional medicine, and new innovations which can improve patient outcomes,” the site said.

“Most of the innovations which have been most successful in the markets have originated in Australia, or through Australian partners. Some of the successes have been tetravalent, recombinant genetically Dengue Fever vaccines and test kits (supported by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, now partnered with a major pharmaceutical company in the USA), treatments for Pancreatic cancer (now partnered with a major pharmaceutical company in the USA), treatments for blinding eye diseases (now partnered with Canadian and European large pharmaceutical companies), and various medical devices used in eye surgery, skin cancer medicine, and other areas of medicine.

“Dr Ardrey also assists small companies with the commercialization of new media and software technologies, and has successfully developed products used by the National Basketball Association (NBA), Comcast, Cablevision, and Major League Baseball.

“He is a published author and university lecturer, and also conducts RTO courses in health and safety.”