Okotoks RCMP arrested an Ottawa man on Thursday for allegedly defrauding a Foothills County resident of a large amount of money in a grandparent scam.
The woman received a call from a person claiming to be a lawyer, saying her great nephew was in jail and needed bail money – a request consistent with warnings from police about the grandparent scam.
After an investigation, police identified a male suspect and obtained a search warrant for his temporary residence in Calgary. Police recovered the victim’s money in the residence and 22-year-old Nigel Nyembwe has been charged with fraud over $5,000 and attempted fraud over $5,000. Additional charges are pending. He has been remanded to custody following a judicial hearing and will appear in court in Cochrane, Alta. on Tuesday.
Police say there is evidence of more victims of the scam conducted by Nyembwe and police are trying to locate these victims.
If anyone has any information regarding this crime, please contact the Okotoks RCMP at 403-995-6400. If you wish to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or online.