Nov 21, 2008 - 02:10 PM

DURHAM -- Five Durham residents are facing more than 180 charges following an investigation into tampered banking machines.

Durham Regional Police major fraud unit began investigating a 51-year-old Cambridge man in July for a series of ATM skimming incidents at Bank of Montreal sites in Bowmanville and Ajax. This resulted in the Cambridge man facing 14 charges.

The investigation continued into the manufacturing and use of ATM skimming equipment.

Police found that the Cambridge man had travelled to Edmonton, Calgary and other surrounding areas with several males from Durham Region.

The fraud unit was contacted by the Edmonton police on Monday, Nov. 17, and told one of the skimming suspects would be buying a major appliance at a Pickering department store with a fraudulent credit cards, police said. The suspects were found and followed to an Ajax home, where two people were arrested unloading an appliance.

Police said the men had assumed new identities and had received an Ontario driver's licence under false names by using counterfeit identification. Officers believe the men are responsible for a series of ATM skimming incidents at the National Bank of Canada in Pickering in October.

In a search of the home, police found false IDs, appliances, furniture, LCD TVs, home furnishing and $10,000 in cash.

Police also searched a storage unit and found pinhole cameras, recording devices, credit, debit and gift cards encoded with stolen data, laptop computers and other equipment.

On Nov. 20, three additional people were arrested. A third search at another Ajax residence found more skimming equipment.

Charged are: Ian Laffan, 33, of Marriner Crescent in Ajax, Corrie Wheartly, 36 of McNicol Crescent in Ajax, Shawn Routly, 37 of Fairmeadows Boulevard in Whitby, Catherine Bell, 33 of McNicol Crescent in Ajax and Michelle Jobin, 33 of Rathmore Drive in Pickering.

All five accused are jointly charged with participating in a criminal organization and conspiracy to commit an indictable offence.

Mr. Laffan faces 60 additional charges, including fraud over $5,000, unlawful possession of credit card data, possession of instruments used in forging credit cards, forgery of a credit card, possessing credit card obtained by crime, possession of property obtained by crime, driving while disqualified, fail to comply OIC undertaking and personation.

Mr. Wheartly faces 80 other charges including: fraud over $5,000, unlawful possession of credit card data, possession of instruments used in forging credit cards, forgery of a credit card, possess credit card obtained by crime, possession of property obtained by crime, possession of proceeds of crime, obtaining credit by fraud, utter forged document, forgery, possessing equipment adapted for forgery, fraudulent use of a citizenship card, possession of a counterfeit mark and fail to comply OIC undertaking.

Mr. Routly faces 37 additional fraud charges, including: fraud over $5,000, unlawful possession of credit card data, possession of instruments used in forging credit cards, forgery of a credit card, possess credit card obtained by crime, possession of property obtained by crime and possessing equipment adapted for forgery.

Ms. Bell has also been charged with possession of property obtained by crime and possessing the proceeds of crime.

All five accused were to appear in bail court Friday morning at the Ontario Court of Justice in Oshawa.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Jeff Caplan of the DRPS Major Fraud Unit at 905-579-1520, ext. 5702. Anonymous tips can be made to the Durham Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222 TIPS (8477) and tipsters may be eligible for a cash reward of up to $2,000.