Canadian finance figure died in Mongolia of illness: police

By Terrence Edwards ULAN BATOR (Reuters) - A preliminary examination shows that Jim Doak, a well-known figure in Canada's financial industry who was found dead in his hotel room in Mongolia on Thursday, died of an unspecified illness, local police said on Friday. His body was discovered in his room at the Blue Sky Tower and Hotel in Ulan Bator a day after Doak, chairman of uranium explorer Khan Resources Inc, had met with government officials to persuade them to pay the more than $100 million that had been awarded to Khan by an international tribunal. The police statement said the preliminary exam found no signs of physical injuries or wounds. "The deceased has died of illness, not of an external cause," it said. A Mongolian police official who asked not to be named said more information from a final forensic report would be released on Monday. In a long-awaited decision last month, the international tribunal ordered Mongolia to pay about $100 million to Khan Resources as compensation for cancelling its uranium-mining licenses in 2009. Khan took Mongolia to international arbitration after Mongolia handed the licenses to develop the Dornod uranium project to Russia's ARMZ. Khan had said in a statement on Thursday that company officials met with the government on April 21 and 22 to request full and prompt payment, and that the company had also begun seeking enforcement action. In a statement on Friday confirming Doak's death, Khan said it would continue to pursue the money. "In respect of international arbitration, Jim and I and the board had developed a clear and consistent strategy for settlement of the award and for obtaining value for the shareholder. That strategy will not change one iota as a result of Jim’s passing," Khan Chief Executive Grant Edey said in a statement. According to a biography on Khan's website, Doak had been president and managing partner of Toronto-based Megantic Asset Management Inc and had previously held senior positions at ScotiaMcLeod Inc, First Marathon Securities Ltd and McLeod Young Weir Ltd. He had also served on various boards, including that of forest-products company Cascades Inc. (Editing by Jeffrey Hodgson; and Peter Galloway)