Men charged in Saskatoon grandparent scam now facing organized crime charges

Three Quebec men previously charged with fraud linked toan alleged grandparent scam targeting some seniors in Saskatoon are now facing additional charges, including organized crime charges.

The trio were originally charged with 10 counts of fraud over $5,000, according to a news release sent midday Monday.Police allege the trio began running the scam Dec. 21, 2022, in the city and stole more than $100,000in $9,000 and $9,800 increments.

Earlier this week, Saskatoon police charged two 25-year-old men with committing an indictable offence for the benefit of a criminal organization, and one of these men was also charged with recruiting for a criminal organization.

An investigation lead to all three also facingtwo additional charges of fraud over $5,000.

Saskatoon Police Service Supt. Patrick Nogiertold reporters there are ways to prepare for a scam like this.

"I think the important point here is family matters," he said.

"Stay connected, make sure that there's good communication back and forth with your family members. Make sure that you talk about different types of protocols that you might want to put into place when someone receives a suspicious phone call about a family member."

Nogier said that these scammers are preying on older people and on the emotions that come with a family member possibly being in trouble. He added that once scammers take things offline, and resort to cash or in-person interactions, it can be a lot harder to trace and get a sense of how the scam is working.

Saskatoon police say the investigation is ongoing.

Police urge members of the public to contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre if they "have received a suspicious call and suspect fraud but have not been victimized," according to the release.

People who have been victims of fraud are encouraged to contact the Saskatoon Police Service directly, either online or at 306-975-8300.

"We know that since late December, we touched on approximately 20 different investigations. Some of them we were very easily and very quickly able to determine that they were associated to these three individuals," Nogier said.

"There's still some other ones we're exploring that there wasn't an ability to connect them."