Ottawa woman charged following investigation into historical employee fraud

https://www.ottawapolice.ca/Modules/News/index.aspx?newsId=fc24e85d-d016-49bf-acbb-b1ffbeadafbd

Posted On Friday November 15, 2019

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, November 15, 2019         1:46pm 

(Ottawa) — The Ottawa Police Service Organized Fraud Unit has charged Chantal COUTURE, 45 years old of Ottawa following an investigation into a complaint of a historical employee-related fraud. 

It was alleged that while working in the financial section of a local convenience store, she cashed over 50 cheques made in her name and the cheques had a forged signature. The events are believed to have occurred over a period of two years, and began in 2017. The alleged fraud was evaluated at about $30,000. 

COUTURE was arrested on October 23, 2019 and charged with one count of Fraud over and one count of Uttering forged document.

She was released on a Promise to Appear on November 18, 2019.

Fraudulent phone calls claiming to be from Service Canada

https://www.ottawapolice.ca/Modules/News/index.aspx?page=3&newsId=cf2d52fe-f13d-4c38-9c4c-f39a377ed4dd

Posted On Tuesday November 05, 2019

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, November 5, 2019    900am 

(Ottawa) – The Ottawa Police Organized Fraud Unit is warning the community about a recent phone scam that is being reported in Ottawa and across the country.  

The fraudulent phone calls are coming to both cell phone and land lines and may display the phone number of a legitimate government agency. The recorded message when the phone is answered claims that it is ‘Service Canada’ calling and that there has been a crime committed with ‘your social insurance number (SIN) and to press “1” to avoid prosecution’. 

Police are urging Ottawa residents not to press 1 and to simply hang up. People who have continued with the call have been directed to purchase gift cards or bitcoins in order to avoid prosecution.  Financial losses have ranged from $3000 to $15,000. 

With regards to this and similar type of calls, police advises that:

• No government agency will demand or accept payment in Bitcoin or gift cards;
• Never give out personal or banking information over the telephone unless you are absolutely sure of who you are giving it to (do not release your PIN to anyone);
• Do not rely on your phone’s call display option to validate who you are actually speaking with, as fraudsters can spoof phone numbers. 

With regards to this specific false “Service Canada” calls, police would also like to advise that these are robocalls and that the caller does not know any information about you. They will only know your SIN if you provide it to them. More information is available with Service Canada. 

For more information on this and other frauds, please follow @FraudOttawa or visit our website. 

Florida man convicted of defrauding City of Ottawa

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/florida-fraudster-ottawa-convicted-1.5321143

City treasurer sent more than $100K after receiving emails from scammer

CBC News · Posted: Oct 15, 2019 1:48 PM ET | Last Updated: 9 hours ago

Elvin Lewis Jr. told CBC in April he, too, was an unwitting victim of a scam targeting the City of Ottawa. (Submitted)

A Florida man accused of defrauding the City of Ottawa out of more than $100,000 has been found guilty by a U.S. judge.

Elvin Lewis Jr. was convicted late last week on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering, following a five-day trial. 

Lewis had been charged in relation to a July 2018 scam targeting city treasurer Marian Simulik. Acting on an email from someone posing as city manager Steve Kanellakos, Simulik wired $97,797.20 US — currently worth about $130,000 Cdn — to a U.S. bank account. 

City solicitor Rick O'Connor identified Lewis as the culprit in April after the incident was made public in a city auditor's report.

Scammers laundered $3M US

Lewis and his co-conspirators also sent fake emails and invoices to a power company in Ohio and a trucking company in Tennessee, directing them to make payments to various bank accounts through wire transfers, according to Florida prosecutors. 

• Florida man accused in $100K US phishing scam claims innocence

The scam laundered approximately $3 million US in less than one year, according to the investigation involving the FBI and U.S. Secret Service in Florida.

Lewis kept $160,000 USD in cash for himself, and acquired a Porsche, which law enforcement officials later seized.

Claimed he was a 'money mule'

In April, Lewis told CBC the accusations against him were "mind-blowing," claiming he was innocent and had been unwittingly used by the scammers.

"I wasn't involved in ripping off the City of Ottawa. That's, like, ridiculous," Lewis said. "I'm a victim in this, and they call what I did a 'money mule.'"

The scam perpetrated on the city treasurer is known as "whaling" because it targets big fish such as CEOs and chief financial officers of major corporations, including municipalities.

In July 2018, Simulik received a fake email asking her to pay a city IT supplier, which she assumed had something to do with an overhaul of the ottawa.ca website. After a few emails back and forth, she authorized and sent the requested amount to a U.S. bank account.

Lewis is expected to be sentenced on Jan. 10, and could receive a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each of the 11 counts he was convicted on.

Warning about Apartment and Parking spot Rental scams in Ottawa

https://www.ottawapolice.ca/Modules/News/index.aspx?newsId=38480707-cd0a-42bb-9124-cb10df2016d7

Posted On Thursday October 03, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  Thursday, October 3, 2019     2:45pm 

(Ottawa)—The Ottawa Police Service Organized Fraud Unit would like to warn the community of two ongoing rental scams that have made several victims in the month of September.

The first one is an Apartment Rental Scam where future tenants view photos of a place they would like to rent via online platforms.  They make contact with the fraudster who tries to gain the victim’s trust while using pressure tactics about other interested tenants and a monthly rent below market value, which adds pressure to sign promptly.

Both enter into a lease negotiation and the fraudster will either require a deposit (half a month to two month rent) by e-transfer.  The victim then attends the location on a set date and time and finds out that the unit is currently rented.  Victims of this scam include international students, out-of-town citizens and Ottawa residents.

The second scam is known as the Rental Parking Scam where fraudsters will respond to a person’s online advertisement looking for parking or offer a parking spot via online platforms.  The price and leasing agreements are negotiated and a deposit is requested via e-transfer to the suspect. 

In some cases, victims only found out about the Parking scam when they started using the parking spot and received a warning from the true parking space owner.  This scam has mainly occurred in the central part of Ottawa.

Ottawa Police is concerned that there are other victims who may have also lost hundreds if not thousands of dollars with these scams. If you have been a victim, please report the incident online. 

The Organized Fraud Unit would like to remind consumers to be vigilant when purchasing items/services from unknown persons online. More tips are available online.

Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to call Ottawa Police's Organized Fraud Unit at 613-236-1222, ext.5433.  Anonymous tips can be submitted by calling Crime Stoppers toll free at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), or by downloading the Ottawa Police app. 

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CONTACT:

Media Relations Section

Tel: 613-236-1222, ext. 5366

Beware of a scam using the Ottawa Police main phone number and 9-1-1

https://www.ottawapolice.ca/Modules/News/index.aspx?newsId=1fd80644-e20c-46a6-8bae-67eb2971570b

Posted On Wednesday September 25, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, September 25, 2019        3:15pm 

(Ottawa) — The Ottawa Police Service Fraud Unit is advising the community of recent scams involving phone numbers similar to the Ottawa Police Service, including 9-1-1 and our main phone number, 613-236-1222.

In one case, a fraudster claimed to be a police officer with Service Canada and told the victim that their Social Insurance Number (SIN) had been used in a scam. Money was requested from the victim to assist with an investigation.

In a second case, the fraudster called a victim and said he was from the Canada Revenue Agency. During one of the calls, “9-1-1” actually appeared on the phone screen display. The fraudster claimed an outstanding tax balance that should be paid with Google Play Cards.

It should be noted that the actual Ottawa Police phone number (613-236-1222) will not show up on your call display when you are receiving a legitimate call from the Ottawa Police. 

Anyone who receives unsolicited calls or e-mails from someone requesting money or personal information should first verify directly with the agency in question, before responding.

For more information on this and other frauds, please follow @FraudOttawa or visit our website for more tips.  

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CONTACT:

Media Relations Section

Tel: 613-236-1222, ext. 5366

Tow truck owner/operator charged in a fraud investigation

https://www.ottawapolice.ca/Modules/News/index.aspx?page=2&newsId=36c33b30-3dd3-44da-8209-b197381e9d0e

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, September 19, 2019     10:07am 

(Ottawa)— On September 12^th, 2019 the Ottawa Police Service Organized Fraud Unit arrested and charged a tow truck owner/operator following a complaint of fraud allegations. 

Ibrahim MASRI, 33 years old, of Ottawa was charged with:

• False Pretence Over $5000 (2 counts)
• Theft of a motor vehicle
• Mischief Over $5000

A police investigation was commenced by the Ottawa Police Organized Fraud Unit in August 2019 in response to two separate complaints that an Ottawa based tow truck company had conducted business under the false pretence that they were CAA. 

Allegations: In both cases, the complainants later found out that CAA had no records of these calls and that they had likely been in touch with a different towing company.   In one case, the investigation revealed that the caller’s vehicle was taken without their consent and brought to an unknown location where impound fees eventually exceeded $5 000.  

On September 17^th, 2019 the Ottawa Police Service Fraud Unit executed a search warrant at the tow truck compound in the Leitrim/Albion Roads area. 

CAA was cooperative and assisted the police investigation. CAA had no involvement with this current fraud.  

The Ottawa Police Service asks anyone having experienced a similar incident to report it to the Ottawa Police at 613-236-1222, ext. 7300. 

MASRI is scheduled to appear in court on October 9, 2019.  

This investigation is ongoing. 

Defence lawyer who overbilled legal aid gets suspended

https://ottawasun.com/news/local-news/defence-lawyer-suspended-for-overbilling-legal-aid/wcm/fdfc8313-7062-4c18-ab17-17f57a60449a

Life for Robert Miller was a bit of a blur from 2005 to 2007, with the long-established criminal lawyer handling 50 per cent of all cases in L’Orignal on his own while quietly dealing with depression.

The high-volume lawyer left the bookkeeping — and notably the legal aid billing — to his administrative assistant who worked in another office in another town. The legal aid billing had recently moved online and the lawyer, now 59, had enough on his plate so his assistant went about the work unsupervised, and in those two years, she overbilled legal aid $207,646.

The Law Society of Ontario accused Miller of billing legal aid for dozens of trials and bail hearings that never happened, and earlier this year he pleaded guilty to conduct that undermines the integrity of the profession, and failing to keep “contemporaneous detailed records in support of his accounts to the (Law Society of Ontario).”

In an Aug. 9 decision, Miller was suspended for four months. The criminal lawyer has already paid back the money to legal aid, including the half that went into the pockets of his former law partner, according to the law society disciplinary decision.

Miller, who has done everything from drug to homicide cases, has always vehemently denied that he defrauded legal aid and he’s pleased the law society found no evidence of dishonesty.

Reached on Thursday, Miller politely declined to comment beyond saying he was happy with the resolution, and confirmed that no major cases will be affected by his suspension.

In a statement to this newspaper last year, Miller said he was innocent and always held himself to the highest ethical standards.

“I have never defrauded Legal Aid Ontario in any way. The allegations of professional misconduct made by the law society arise from allegations going back to 2005 through 2007. I have retained counsel and have instructed him to contest these allegations vigorously,” Miller said.

“I am presumed to be innocent. I am confident that the hearing panel will find that I am not guilty of any regulatory offences,” he said.

In the 2018 interview, Miller said overbilling happened between 2005 and 2007 and blamed his own inadequate supervision. He said he was working 80 hours a week and had management issues that were a direct cause of what he described as billing irregularities.

Miller was also suffering from undiagnosed bipolar disorder, which contributed to his inadequate supervision of his law firm, according to the law society which reviewed a psychiatrist’s report.

Miller fully co-operated and pleaded guilty to misconduct and immediately started repaying the money back. He took out a personal loan to cover the last payment.

At the disciplinary hearing, lawyers including Mark Ertel and John Hale, testified on Miller’s behalf and documented the lawyer’s top-shelf reputation. Several judges also submitted personal character-reference letters in support of Miller.

gdimmock@postmedia.com

http://www.twitter.com/crimegarden