The RCMP have charged three Windsor people with fraud for defrauding vacationing families across Canada.
They were part of a group of seven people who allegedly advertised property rentals for cottages they did not own or have rights to. At least 75 people were defrauded out of $68,000.
RCMP say the victims believed they had reached an agreement to rent a property for a period of time after communicating with the suspects via email and text message. The victims sent payments to one of the accused through email money transfer and often did not discover anything was off until they arrived at the rental destination.
“The RCMP is committed to protecting the economic integrity of Canada and works to identify criminal organizations who seek to deceive the people in our communities. These crimes have no boundaries, and this investigation is an excellent example of how a law enforcement agency will pursue leads from the community to disrupt the goals of a criminal organization," says Inspector Joe Czenze.
RCMP ask anyone who have experienced this kind of fraud to contact them at the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501.
All seven suspects are facing charges of fraud over $5,000 and possession of proceeds of crime.
