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Two people have been arrested in connection with a series of fraud cases committed at Home Depot locations across southern Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).
Back on Thursday, July 11th, at 4:34 pm, officers were called to the Home Depot located at 99 Cross Avenue in Oakville in response to a suspect attempting to fraudulently purchase various expensive items. The suspect fled prior to police arrival; however, a rental vehicle belonging to the suspect was recovered at the scene.
Officers eventually executed a search warrant on the rental vehicle. Property belonging to Home Depot, along with multiple fraudulent credit cards and fraudulent identifications were located inside. The suspect was positively identified finding he had been utilizing Home Depot gift and credit cards, along with fraudulent identifications to purchase various items from Home Depots located across southern Ontario. Transactions at these locations were determined to have taken place between May and July with losses estimated at $100,000. As the investigation unfolded a second suspect was also identified as participating in these frauds.
As a result of investigation, on Wednesday, August 14th, 30-year-old Huguens Charlescat of Etobicoke was arrested and charged with the following:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime
- Possession of Counterfeit Mark
- Fraud Over $5000
- Personation With Intent
- Breach of Conditional Sentence Order
Charlescat has been held in custody pending a bail hearing in Milton.
On August 14 2024, 29-year-old Melissa Levesque of Etobicoke was arrested and charged with the following:
- Fraud Over $5000
Levesque was released on an Undertaking with a court date set for September 17th in Milton.
Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to contact the Financial Crimes Unit at 905-825-4777 ext. 8739.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. “See something? Hear something? Know something? Contact Crime Stoppers” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.
