Corrupt stockbroker spared jail over £5.4m gold mine swindle

A corrupt stockbroker who promised more than 300 investors huge returns for pouring £5.4m into a South American gold mine has been spared jail. Stephen Todd, 41, masterminded the swindle through IPR Capital Ltd, offering shares in the mining company in Ecuador. Todd has previous convictions for fraud and was disqualified from being a company boss for 10 years in 2017 for unfit conduct while running a series of disreputable firms in the City. He and financial analyst Steven Mayne,…