A 53-year-old Oakville man has been charged in connection with an alleged fraud targeting new immigrants to Canada.
Halton Regional Police said they began their investigation into the fraud last month after receiving multiple reports about it.
Their investigation uncovered that a suspect allegedly pretended to be an executive at Toyota Motor Corporation and offered employment to potential victims, most of whom were new to Canada and were working as Uber or Lyft drivers, police said.
“The suspect would convince his victims to provide sensitive personal documents, including passports, social insurance numbers, banking information and government issued identification which he would then use to fraudulently obtain items such as mobile phones and motor vehicles, including a residential lease which was obtained using a false identity,” police allege in a news release on Friday.
“These victims were often unfamiliar with Canadian employment standards, making them vulnerable to exploitation.”
Police said they found three victims during the course of the investigation and, as a result, arrested the suspect this week. He has been identified as Rafael Layton.
The 53-year-old is facing charges of fraud over $5,000, identity fraud, false pretenses and failure to comply with a release order. The charges have not been tested in court.
Investigators have released Layton’s photo as they believe there may be additional victims. Police said the suspect commonly uses the aliases Rafiq and Ali.
Anyone who may have been defrauded is being asked to contact investigators at 905-825-4777 ext. 8737 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
Correction
This article has been updated from a previous version that misstated the age of the accused.
