On Tuesday, December 19, 2018, three search warrants were executed regarding a Fraud investigation into Taxi Fare Scams in the Greater Toronto Area.
It is alleged that:
- customers taking various cabs during the evening and early morning hours were being defrauded
- the drivers would pick up a fare and drive them to their destination
- the customer would attempt to pay for the fare utilizing their debit or credit card, after being handed an altered Point of Sale machine by the driver
- the customer would enter their PIN information and would be met with a error/problem with the machine
- the transaction would not process properly and the driver would ask for the machine back to rectify the problem
- the driver would then remove the customers debit/credit card, without them knowing and replace it with another person's card that is from the same banking institution
- the customer would complete what they believe is a proper transaction for the ride and then remove the card they believe is their own
- the customer takes the 'switched' debit/credit card and proceeds to their destination
- the cab driver proceeds to the bank where the debit/visa card is associated
- the PIN information belonging to the customer captured on the Point of Sale Machine is activated and the driver and or another perpetrator waiting takes the information and proceeds to an Automated Teller Machine
- the customer's account is accessed using the stolen debit/visa card and their PIN is entered gaining access to their personal accounts
- the customer's funds are depleted from their accounts fraudulently
- the customer usually have no knowledge of the fraud until the bank notifies them, or they attempt to utilize the card provided to them by the driver at a later date, realizing it has been swapped
On Wednesday, December 19, 2018, search warrants were executed on several addresses.
It is further alleged:
A point of sale machine was recovered, along with financial documents, mail and personal banking information relating to the identity theft victims.
Four men, a woman, and a boy have been arrested. They are charged collectively with over 262 fraud-related charges relating to Taxi Fare Scams such as:
- Fraud Over
- Fraud Under
- Identity Theft
- Unauthorized use of debit/credit Card information
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Possession of Proceeds Obtained by Crime
On Tuesday, December 19, 2018, Alex Ghakhar, 22, and Adam Ghakhar 22, of Toronto, were arrested.
They are both scheduled to appear in court at College Park on Tuesday, February 12, 2019, at 10 a.m.
On Thursday, December 20, 2018, Mohammad Sarwar, 25, of Toronto, was arrested. He is scheduled to appear in court at College Park on Thursday, February 28, 2019, at 10 a.m.
On Wednesday, November 14, 2018, Tracy Begley, 48, of Toronto, was arrested.
There is currently a bench warrant out for her arrest.
On Wednesday, November 28, 2018, John Alexander Mackenzie, 24, of Toronto, was arrested. He is scheduled to appear in court at College Park on Wednesday, February 6, 2019, at 10 a.m
On Tuesday, January, 15, 2019, a 16-year-old boy, of Toronto, was arrested.
He is scheduled to appear in court at 311 Jarvis Street on Wednesday April, 3, 2019, at 10 a.m.
***Please refer to Section 110, Subsection 1, of the YCJA:
110. (1) Subject to this section, no person shall publish the name of a young person, or any other information related to a young person, if it would identify the young person as a young person dealt with under this Act.
***
The 55 Division Fraud Office would like to warn the public regarding this ongoing taxi fare scam.
There are still a number of incidents occurring, and there are still outstanding individuals actively defrauding the public utilizing various cabs in the GTA.
The cab companies are NOT directly involved and are not being held accountable.
The Toronto Police Service would like to advise the public to be vigilant when utilizing ANY type of public transportation that results in debit/credit card transactions.
- do not leave your debit or credit card unattended inside a Point of Sale machine anywhere or at any time
- be aware of Cab Numbers and Company names when utilizing their services
- be aware of the drivers identification that is displayed to the customer in clear view in the rear of the cab
- when handed a Point of Sale machine, for any reason at any time, your debit and credit card should not be left inside the machine and handed back for any reason. Always remove your card.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-5500, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com, online on our Facebook Leave a Tip page, or text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637). Download the free Crime Stoppers Mobile App on iTunes, Google Play or Blackberry App World.
For more news, visit TPSnews.ca.
It is alleged that:
- customers taking various cabs during the evening and early morning hours were being defrauded
- the drivers would pick up a fare and drive them to their destination
- the customer would attempt to pay for the fare utilizing their debit or credit card, after being handed an altered Point of Sale machine by the driver
- the customer would enter their PIN information and would be met with a error/problem with the machine
- the transaction would not process properly and the driver would ask for the machine back to rectify the problem
- the driver would then remove the customers debit/credit card, without them knowing and replace it with another person's card that is from the same banking institution
- the customer would complete what they believe is a proper transaction for the ride and then remove the card they believe is their own
- the customer takes the 'switched' debit/credit card and proceeds to their destination
- the cab driver proceeds to the bank where the debit/visa card is associated
- the PIN information belonging to the customer captured on the Point of Sale Machine is activated and the driver and or another perpetrator waiting takes the information and proceeds to an Automated Teller Machine
- the customer's account is accessed using the stolen debit/visa card and their PIN is entered gaining access to their personal accounts
- the customer's funds are depleted from their accounts fraudulently
- the customer usually have no knowledge of the fraud until the bank notifies them, or they attempt to utilize the card provided to them by the driver at a later date, realizing it has been swapped
On Wednesday, December 19, 2018, search warrants were executed on several addresses.
It is further alleged:
A point of sale machine was recovered, along with financial documents, mail and personal banking information relating to the identity theft victims.
Four men, a woman, and a boy have been arrested. They are charged collectively with over 262 fraud-related charges relating to Taxi Fare Scams such as:
- Fraud Over
- Fraud Under
- Identity Theft
- Unauthorized use of debit/credit Card information
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Possession of Proceeds Obtained by Crime
On Tuesday, December 19, 2018, Alex Ghakhar, 22, and Adam Ghakhar 22, of Toronto, were arrested.
They are both scheduled to appear in court at College Park on Tuesday, February 12, 2019, at 10 a.m.
On Thursday, December 20, 2018, Mohammad Sarwar, 25, of Toronto, was arrested. He is scheduled to appear in court at College Park on Thursday, February 28, 2019, at 10 a.m.
On Wednesday, November 14, 2018, Tracy Begley, 48, of Toronto, was arrested.
There is currently a bench warrant out for her arrest.
On Wednesday, November 28, 2018, John Alexander Mackenzie, 24, of Toronto, was arrested. He is scheduled to appear in court at College Park on Wednesday, February 6, 2019, at 10 a.m
On Tuesday, January, 15, 2019, a 16-year-old boy, of Toronto, was arrested.
He is scheduled to appear in court at 311 Jarvis Street on Wednesday April, 3, 2019, at 10 a.m.
***Please refer to Section 110, Subsection 1, of the YCJA:
110. (1) Subject to this section, no person shall publish the name of a young person, or any other information related to a young person, if it would identify the young person as a young person dealt with under this Act.
***
The 55 Division Fraud Office would like to warn the public regarding this ongoing taxi fare scam.
There are still a number of incidents occurring, and there are still outstanding individuals actively defrauding the public utilizing various cabs in the GTA.
The cab companies are NOT directly involved and are not being held accountable.
The Toronto Police Service would like to advise the public to be vigilant when utilizing ANY type of public transportation that results in debit/credit card transactions.
- do not leave your debit or credit card unattended inside a Point of Sale machine anywhere or at any time
- be aware of Cab Numbers and Company names when utilizing their services
- be aware of the drivers identification that is displayed to the customer in clear view in the rear of the cab
- when handed a Point of Sale machine, for any reason at any time, your debit and credit card should not be left inside the machine and handed back for any reason. Always remove your card.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-5500, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), online at www.222tips.com, online on our Facebook Leave a Tip page, or text TOR and your message to CRIMES (274637). Download the free Crime Stoppers Mobile App on iTunes, Google Play or Blackberry App World.
For more news, visit TPSnews.ca.