Grandparents scam: Two Que. men charged with defrauding Ont. man, 94

Two young Quebec men were arrested by Hamilton, Ont. police in connection with a 'grandparents scam' that defrauded a 94-year-old man.

Emmanuel Dimotakis, 19, and Daniel Gallucci, 21, were both charged with fraud over $5,000. Dimotakis was also charged with impersonating a peace officer.

Both men are from Laval, a municipality in the Montreal area. Police are also looking for a third female suspect.

On Nov. 1, 2022, the 94-year-old victim from Hamilton began receiving phone calls from a man impersonating an RCMP officer, according to a police press release.

The suspect allegedly informed the victim that his grandson was in police custody for drug possession, demanding a $120,000 bond to release him.

The other suspect, posing as the grandson, also spoke on the phone to plead with the victim.

"Worried about his grandson, the victim agreed to pay a portion of the demanded bond money, as it was all he had at the time," the release states.

The victim sent some money to the scammers, but the losses were minimized after his bank flagged the abnormal activity.

Later that same day, a woman posing as a court courier reportedly travelled to the victim's residence to collect the money and told him a court-imposed "gag order" prohibited him from talking about what happened.

The victim received further phone calls on Nov. 2 demanding the remainder of the bond money.

"The suspects directed the victim to place the money in an envelope at an undisclosed location. At this point, the victim became suspicious and notified the Hamilton Police Service," the release continues.

Police are asking anyone with information on the crime to contact detective Angela Abrams at 905-546-4603 or Sergeant Oliver Mann 905-546-3841.

Information can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online.