Man faces fraud charges in Toronto; Newmarket resident gets house arrest for hate-motivated crime
· Toronto Sun
Toronto Police have charged a 20-year-old man following an investigation in which it’s alleged he fraudulently used credit cards to buy $25,000 worth of jewelry.
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Police allege that the first victim received a call on Oct. 1, 2025, from a suspect posing as a bank employee.
It was reported that the suspect told them their credit card had been compromised and arranged for a courier to go to their house in the Cosburn Ave. and Pape Ave. area to collect the card.
It’s further alleged the suspect then used the credit card at a Mississauga store where he bought $11,000 worth of jewelry.
Police said a second victim received a call from the suspect two days later in which he allegedly posed as a bank employee. The victim reported being told their credit card had been compromised and the suspect arranged for a courier to go to their house in The East Mall and Evans Ave. area to collect the card.
It’s further alleged the suspect then used the credit card at a Mississauga store where he bought $14,000 worth of jewelry.
On Thursday, police said Abdel Madjid Benmaou was arrested and charged with three counts each of possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000, possess/use credit card obtained by offence, and unauthorized use of credit card data, two counts each of false pretenses, fraud over $5,000, and possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000, and one count of fraud under $5,000.
Investigators believe that there may be more victims and released an image of the accused.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-5500, or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477).
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HATE-MOTIVATED SENTENCING
A Newmarket man was sentenced Thursday to one-year house arrest after pleading guilty to hate-motivated charges last week.
York Regional Police said Donald Cameron was arrested on Sept. 4, 2025, after he allegedly made verbal threats toward Muslims, including utterances of blowing up a mosque in Newmarket, and threatening to kill his neighbour who is Muslim.
Cameron pleaded guilty to two counts of uttering threats on March 18, and was sentenced in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Newmarket.
In the ruling, the justice invoked Section 718 of the Criminal Code of Canada, which recognizes hate motivation as an aggravating factor when determining the sentence.
In accordance with the conditional sentence order, Cameron will be on house arrest for two-thirds of the sentence and will be monitored electronically for the entire duration of the order.
Among other conditions, the order prohibits Cameron from living in Newmarket, or be within 100 metres of any mosque in Canada.
Following the year-long conditional sentence order, Cameron will serve three years of probation.
“Hate has no place in York Region, and any act of Islamophobia is both disturbing and unacceptable,” York Regional Police Chief Jim MacSween said in a statement.
“We remain steadfast in our commitment to combating all forms of hate, bigotry, and intolerance and we will continue to prioritize public safety by thoroughly investigating any instance of hate in our region. On behalf of the York Regional Police Executive Leadership Team, I extend my gratitude to the members of the Hate Crime Prevention Unit, whose diligent work led to today’s sentencing.”
SEPARATE ROBBERIES IN PICKERING
Durham Regional Police say they are searching for two male suspects in separate armed robberies in Pickering last week.
In the first case, police said officers responded shortly after 1 a.m. on March 20 to a robbery call at a Circle K convenience store on Kingston Rd.
It was reported a man waited inside the store until all customers had left before he approached the sales counter and demanded cash from an employee.
According to police, the suspect kept his hand in his jacket pocket which gave the impression he was armed. He then stole money from the cash register before fleeing the area on foot.
The victim did not suffer any physical injuries, cops said.
The suspect is described as Black, about 5-foot-10 with a heavy build.
In the second case, police said cops responded shortly before 4 p.m. to an armed robbery The Cash Shop, a cash advance business, on Kingston Rd.
It was reported a male entered the business and forced the doors to a secure employee area open and threatened an employee with a weapon while demanding cash.
The suspect stole electronics and more than $10,000 cash before fleeing the area, police said.
The victim did not suffer any physical injuries, cops added.
The second suspect is described as Black, 25 to 30 years old, approximately 6-foot-2 with a slim build.
In both cases, anyone with information is asked to contact the Auto Robbery Crime (ARC) Unit at 1-888-579-1520 ext. 5355, or provide an anonymous tip by calling Durham Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).