**** RCMP Media Release
Police charge man with three counts of fraud over $5,000
The RCMP/HRP Criminal Investigation Division Financial Crime Unit, assisted by the Halifax District RCMP, has charged a man in relation to three frauds in the Hammonds Plains area.
On July 6, 2021, police received a complaint of fraud in relation to the purchase of a watercraft. The victim made a payment of $7,000 to the seller, a 35-year-old man from Hammonds Plains, and never received the watercraft.
On August 12, 2021, police received a second fraud complaint, this time in relation to the purchase and sale of vehicles. Police learned that the same 35-year-old-man from Hammonds Plains received a payment of more than $35,000 to purchase a vehicle that he never delivered and took possession of another vehicle related to the same transaction and didn’t pay the owner.
Through the investigation, police learned that between January 1 and August 31, 2021, the man defrauded victims of over 60,000 in relation to vehicle purchases and sales.
Michael Rizzato has been charged with:
- Three counts of Fraud Over $5,000
- Three counts of Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Exceeding $5,000
- Three counts of Uttering Forged Documents
Rizzato was released from custody and will appear in Halifax Provincial Court on April 5, 2022, at 10a.m.
Anyone who may be a victim of a fraud or scam is encouraged to contact their local police, and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 or online at https://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/index-eng.htm.
