A man sentenced to seven years in prison Friday showed no remorse scamming 250 investors out of nearly $17 million, said a Saskatoon Court of Queen’s Bench judge.

“Ronald Fast is a person bereft of a moral compass, a man who lets the winds blow him into calm and lucrative waters, leaving others behind to deal with the tempests and the sharks,” said Justice Richard Danyliuk in his judgement.

Fast, 71, pleaded guilty in November to theft over $5,000. He was handed a seven-year sentence Friday and ordered to pay $16.7 million in restitution.

His car leasing company, Marathon Leasing, used a Ponzi scheme to avoid bankruptcy. He defrauded around 250 people of nearly $17 million by taking money from new investors to pay other investors.

His daughter, Danielle Fast-Carlson, was the company’s accountant. She was given a two-and-a-half-year sentence Friday and ordered to pay $1 million in restitution for her part in the fraud.

The offences are believed to have occurred sometime between the mid-1990s and 2008, when Marathon Leasing went bankrupt.

The scheme was Saskatchewan’s largest-ever case of fraud.

“People were hurt as a result of your selfishness, your greed, your lack of empathy,” Danyliuk told Fast during sentencing.

The judge said there is little chance the investors will be repaid and pointed out both Fast and his daughter believe they are victims.

Al Procyshyn, a victim of the scam, reiterated the judge’s statement outside court.

“He’s arrogant. That’s the only word the judge didn’t use. That’s the word I’ll use,” Procyshyn said of Fast. “I think that’s why he feels that it’s not his fault.”

Even Fast’s defence lawyer said his client doesn’t hold himself accountable.

“He regrets his actions and he regrets that a lot of people lost a ton of money, but he clearly doesn't understand what he did wrong,” said defence lawyer Michael Nolin. “It’s hard for him to accept responsibility because he doesn't know what he did wrong.”

The crown was seeking a 10-year sentence for Fast but Danyliuk said the request was at the extreme of the sentencing range.