Six Winnipeggers are facing new charges in connection with an interprovincial fraud ring that targeted victims from Ontario to British Columbia, police said.
The Winnipeg Police Service’s financial crimes unit began investigating in May, when a credit card stolen from a Calgary victim was used for purchases that were traced back to Winnipeg.
Police said similar reports followed, and that the suspects are accused of stealing identity documents and credit card info from victims to make online purchases, which were then resold.
The six suspects were arrested this summer in a raid at a Fort Richmond home, which turned up over $10,000 in cash stashed in air vents, as well as high-end merchandise, clothing and electronics, plus identity documents.
Kwabena Owusu Banahene, Johnson Adzotor, Nanayaw Asare Koranteng, Benjamin Kwadwo Bediako, Daniel Nutifafa Amenyeawyu and Tjianna Latasha Smith are all facing multiple fraud-related charges, including additional charges laid this month.
All of the suspects are in their mid-to-late 20s, aside from 34-year-old Bediako, who faces the greatest number of charges at 17. Three remain in custody, while the others were released on an undertaking, police said.