Two dozen Canadians arrested in cheating grandparents, US $ 20 million Bilking

Burlington, vt. – The application of Canadian law arrested 23 Canadian relevant on March 4, after being accused of a large federal jury in Vermont for leading a “grandparents’ scam” that frauduted over $ 21 million. The arrests followed an investigation led by American immigration and customs application (ICE).

The victims were from all the United States, including New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

According to the indictment, uncertain, on March 4, the scheme operated between 2021 and June 2024. Call centers in Montreal and around Montreal targeted more than 40 states, scams posing as relatives or lawyers claiming that a family member was arrested and needed money for bail. Fraudy couriers raised money from victims’ homes before transferring funds to Canada, sometimes using cryptocurrency to hide transactions.

The authorities attacked several call centers on June 4, 2024 and found several suspects in the act of making deceitful calls. The indictment names Gareth West, Usman Khalid, Andrew Tatto, Stephan Moskwyn and Ricky Yimaki as the operation of the operation, loading them with conspiracy to commit money washing.

“These individuals are accused of an elaborate scheme that uses the fear of extracting millions of dollars,” said the special security investigations ICE Homeland investigations to New England Michael J. Krol. “The approach of transnational crime is one of our greatest priorities.”

US Department of Justice, Internal Income Service and several Canadian law enforcement agencies have attended arrests. If convicted, the alleged leaders are facing up to 40 years in prison, while others are facing up to 20 years.

West and Jimmy Ylimaki remain in freedom.