Calgary Pair Charged in Relation to Snowmobile Fraud Ring

Calgary Police Services (CPS) have charged one man and one woman after a complex fraud ring to buy and sell snowmobiles across multiple provinces was discovered last week.

According to a news release by the police, “On Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024, a snowmobile dealership contacted police regarding a suspicious transaction.” The police’s stolen property team along with district investigators worked “to determine the rightful owners of the stolen property and instead uncovered a complex ring of fraudulent identification being used by different people across Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia.”

The police says the suspects used the fraudulent identification to purchase, deliver and sell snowmobiles and snowmobile trailers. Investigators believe that the suspects stole multiple victims’ identification information, created fraudulent identification from the stolen information, and went on to obtain credit cards in the victims’ names in order to purchase the snowmobiles to resell online to unsuspecting buyers.

On Feb. 1, police executed a search warrant on a rural property near the 3500 block of 84 Street Southeast, where they seized additional stolen vehicles including a Mercedes Benz Sports Coup, a Honda Odyssey minivan, and a brand-new utility trailer. The police discovered items exceeding $100,000 in stolen property.

The police have charged 35-year-old Devin Douglas Bruce and 27-year-old Isabella Morgan Schenck. Bruce is charged with two counts of possession of forged documents; two counts of possession of stolen credit cards; one count of possession of stolen identification; and one count of identity information.

Schenck is charged with two counts of possession of a controlled substance and one count of possession of stolen identification.

Both will appear in court on Friday, March 15, 2024. Police are asking anyone with information about the incident to contact the police by calling 403-266-1234 or drop anonymous tips to Crime Stoppers.

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