Police are continuing to ask people to be cautious when attempting to buy or sell property online after uncovering a large-scale fraud investigation in Cambridge led to over 90 charges for a local man and woman.
Through investigation, officers identified 28 related fraud offences that occurred between October 2022 and June 2023 in the Fiddlesticks area of Cambridge.
The occurrences consisted of mainly buy and sell frauds where payment for an item was provided, but the sale item was never received, as well as transportation frauds.
In one incident, on May 6, 2023, police received a report of a fraud in the area of Saginaw Parkway and Burnett Avenue. The victim arranged to buy a smartphone from an individual who had posted the phone for sale on a buy-and-sell website. When the victim met the subject and paid for the phone, the victim was provided with an empty package and the subject refused to return the victim’s money.
As part of the investigation, on June 12, officers from WRPS’ South Division and Emergency Response Team completed a search warrant at a residence in the area of Saginaw Parkway and Burnett Avenue and arrested two individuals.
As a result of the investigation, a 37-year-old female and a 36-year-old male, both from Cambridge, have been charged with over 90 criminal offences.
Charges include conspiracy to commit an indictable offence, fraud under $5,000, possession of proceeds of crime under $5,000, false pretenses, and transportation fraud.
Both accused parties were held in police custody for a bail hearing.
Waterloo Regional Police Service has three Buy and Sell Exchange Zones in Waterloo Region.
These zones, which are located in the parking lot of WRPS facilities, aim to provide some additional peace of mind to those who are buying, selling, or trading property online. Members of the public are encouraged to utilize these Exchange Zones when meeting people to finalize online transactions.
If you are unable to meet a Buy and Sell Exchange Zone, consider completing your transactions in well-lit, public, and popular locations to help avoid being a victim of crime.
More information on the Waterloo Regional Police Service’s Buy and Sell Exchange Zones is available here.
