Fourteen arrested in fraud scheme
Toronto police have arrested 14 people — including a husband and wife — in a fraud and money-laundering investigation where more than $8 million was allegedly stolen, investigators said Friday.
The suspects allegedly used a litany of false identities to open various accounts, get credits cards and secure loans — “anything in relation to obtaining funds,” Toronto police Const. Michael Lane said.
Police allege the suspects cashed hundreds of fraudulent cheques and created legitimate businesses under false identities. They then allegedly used those businesses as covers to obtain even more cash. One woman arrested Monday was a fraud-detection agent. To prevent banks from getting suspicious, Lane said the suspects bought fake websites and phone numbers for each business and fictitious identity, keeping careful records all the while.
“It was a very detailed and elaborate scheme,” Lane added.
The money was allegedly used to buy high-end products like luxury cars, Lane said.
A total of 14 people have been arrested in the investigation, dubbed Project Fellowship, with the latest two arrests happening this past weekend. On Feb. 10, police arrested Balasubramaniam Shanjeefkaran, a 35-year-old man from Ajax.
The next day, they searched his home and seized more than 100 items. Based on the new evidence, police arrested Shanjeefkaran’s wife, 30-year-old Sukanya Panchalingam.
Panchalingam works at a financial institution as a fraud-detection agent, Lane said.
Both are charged with fraud, possession of proceeds obtained by crime and money laundering. Shanjeefkaran is also charged with unauthorized possession of counterfeit mark and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence.
Police laid out a selection of the seized items Friday morning — stacks of debit and credit cards bound by blue rubber bands, expensive laptops and a selection of IDs allegedly based on false identities.