Durham taxidermist charged with insurance fraud

Artistry in Motion claimed $1.2M loss of exotic animals

Durham police have arrested a man after he allegedly made fraudulent claims that deceased exotic animals for his taxidermist business were no longer viable due to a faulty refrigeration system.

On Sept. 11, investigators were contacted by an insurance company regarding multiple claims it considered fraudulent by Artistry in Motion Taxidermy.

Police said the owner of the business bought deceased exotic animals like lions, tigers and monkeys after they died of natural causes to use as art pieces.

The first claim was made in May 2022, when the owner said there was a weather-related failure of his refrigeration system, resulting in financial losses of more than $500,000 of animals.

Then in June the next year, the owner made a claim to the insurance company for another refrigeration system failure. He claimed a loss of more than $700,000 of animals.

After investigating zoos, ranches and safaris named by the suspect, both in Canada and Africa, police said they discovered that the suspect had fraudulently produced purchase invoices, created fictitious zoos and safaris, and inflated the value of the deceased animals.

The 65-year-old man from Uxbridge faces two counts of fraud over $5,000 and two counts of uttering forged documents.

In September 2023, a person with the same name, working for the same taxidermy company in Uxbridge, pleaded guilty to violating polar bear export rules and had to forfeit one full polar bear mount and two hides or rugs. Environment and Climate Change Canada said he was also fined $60,000 for the federal wildlife violations.

Police said the owner of the business bought deceased exotic animals like lions, tigers and monkeys to use as art pieces