Twenty-five Canadians have been charged in Vermont in connection to a grandparent scam that defrauded American seniors of $21 million.
A release from the U.S. Attorneys’ Office said Tuesday that 24 Quebecers, mostly from the Montreal area, and one person from Ontario, stole millions from elderly individuals in Vermont and more than 40 other states.
According to the indictment, between the summer of 2021 and June 4, 2024, the suspects engaged in the fraud that involved calls where they falsely claimed to be an elderly victim’s relative, most often a grandchild, who had been arrested following a car crash and needed bail money. The calls were made from call centres in and around Montreal.
Authorities say others posed as lawyers representing the elderly victim’s relative and would say there was a “gag order” in place to prevent the senior from telling anyone about their family member’s supposed arrest.
The victims were then convinced to hand over bail money to an individual falsely posing as a bail bondsman, who would visit their home to collect the money. The funds were then transferred to Canada by cash delivery and financial transactions, including via cryptocurrency.
The indictment says the use of crypto obscured the source of the money and the identities of defendants.
“On June 4, 2024, when law enforcement in Canada executed search warrants at several call centers, many of the defendants were found in the act of placing phone calls to elderly victims in Virginia,” the U.S. Department of Justice said in its statement.
- Ontario fears tariff reprieve for automakers is designed to move jobs to U.S.
- Canada is pulling U.S. booze off shelves. Here’s what Jack Daniel’s maker said
- ‘Not going back’: Ford will cancel Starlink-Ontario deal even if tariffs are lifted
- ‘Not good enough’: Trump’s trade war continues after Trudeau call
A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging all 25 of them for their participation in the scam on Feb. 20. All but two of the individuals were arrested in Canada on March 4. Two of them remain at large.
Get breaking National news
The indictment alleges the call centres were managed by Gareth West, a.k.a. “Buddy” or “Muscles,” 38, from Burlington, Ont. (who remains at large), Usman Khalid, a.k.a. “Paul” and “Pauly,” 36, from Les Coteaux, Que., Andrew Tatto, a.k.a. “Chevy” and “Truck,” 43, from Pierrefonds, Que., Stephan Moskwyn, a.k.a. “HK,” 42, from Pierrefonds, Que., and Ricky Ylimaki, a.k.a. “Ruffles,” 31, from Île-Perrot, Que.
These five defendants were also charged with conspiring to commit money laundering.
West, Khalid, Tatto, Moskwyn and Ricky Ylimaki could face up to 40 years of prison if convicted, and the remaining defendants face up to 20 years if convicted.
An additional nine individuals have previously been charged in the District of Vermont in connection with the scam, including Otmane Khalladi (32 – Miami,, Jean Richard Audate (39 – New York), Philippe Alvarez (34 – Montréal), Paul Conneh (37 – Guangzhou, China), Dave Leblanc (37 – Greenacres, Fla.), Zavier Buchanan (27 – Wellington, Fla.), William Comfort (29 – Los Angeles), Alejandro Garcia (34 – Miami), and Enmanuel Castillo (31 – Miami).
“These individuals are accused of an elaborate scheme using fear to extort millions of dollars from victims who believed they were helping loved ones in trouble,” said the Acting United States Attorney for the District of Vermont Michael P. Drescher.
The investigation was conducted by various U.S. agencies like Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, but also included the work of Quebec provincial police, the Sûreté du Québec, and the RCMP.
List of the 25 Canadians charged
Gareth West, a.k.a. “Buddy” and “Muscles,” (38 – Burlington, Ont.)
Usman Khalid, a.k.a. “Paul” and “Pauly,” (36 – Les Coteaux, Que.)
Andrew Tatto, a.k.a. “Chevy” and “Truck,” (43 – Pierrefonds, Que.)
Stephan Moskwyn, a.k.a. “HK,” (42 – Pierrefonds, Que.)
Ricky Ylimaki, a.k.a. “Ruffles,” (31 – Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot, Que.)
Richard Frischman, a.k.a. “Styx,” (31 – Montréal)
Adam Lawrence, a.k.a. “Carter,” (41 – Lasalle, Que.)
Michael Filion, a.k.a. “Elvis,” (45 – Pierrefonds, Que.)
Jimmy Ylimaki, a.k.a. “Coop,” (35 – Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot, Que.) — remains at large
Nicolas Gonzalez, a.k.a. “Brady,” (27 – Kirkland, Que.)
Ryan Melanson, a.k.a. “Parker,” (27 – Montréal)
Joy Kalafatidis, a.k.a. “Blondie,” (31 – Pointe-Claire, Que.)
David Arcobelli, a.k.a. “Phil,” (36 – Pierrefonds, Que.)
Jonathan Massouras, a.k.a. “Borze,” (35 – Dollard-Des Ormeaux, Que.)
Nicholas Shiomi, a.k.a. “Keanu,” (42 – Montréal)
Antonio Iannacci, a.k.a. “DJ,” (33 – Pierrefonds, Que.)
Jonathan Ouellet, a.k.a. “Sunny,” (29 – Saint-Eustache, Que.)
Kassey-Lee Lankford, a.k.a. “Lex,” (28 – Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que.)
Sara Burns, a.k.a. “Ginger,” (31 – Dollard-Des Ormeaux, Que.)
Justin Polenz, a.k.a. “Happy,” (34 – Montréal)
Ryan Thibert, a.k.a. “Toast,” (37 – Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que.)
Michael Farella, a.k.a. “Honda,” (29 – Sainte-Geneviève, Que.)
Sebastian Guenole, a.k.a. “Tweeter,” (30 – Pierrefonds, Que.)
Ryan Bridgman, a.k.a. “Clint,” (37 – Deux-Montagnes, Que.)
Stephanie-Marie Samaras, a.k.a. “North” (29 – Laval, Que.)
