Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard says he is the victim of a smear campaign after a Montreal newspaper report that a former colleague of his has been accused of financial fraud.
Couillard denied today he has anything to do with the fraud allegations against Hans Peter Black, a former colleague on the board of directors of a medical research company called Amorfix Life Sciences.
Couillard was president of Amorfix's board of directors between 2010 and 2012, a period in which he was out of politics.
Le Journal de Montreal says Black is accused in New Hampshire of defrauding people who put money in his company called Interinvest Global Asset Management, which also invested in Amorfix.
The newspaper is also reporting that Quebec's securities regulator investigated Black and fined Interinvest in 2012.
Couillard says the allegations have nothing to with him or with Amorfix and added he didn't know the securities regulator was investigating Black when he was on Amorfix's board.
The Quebec premier says he is being accused of guilt by association and that he hasn't had contact with Black since 2012.
