Scam courier will spend more time behind bars
Saleh Abdullah Mohamed, 30, of Montreal, was a lesser play in fraud scheme, judge said, but strong message denouncing crimes was necessary given effects on victims
While there were a number of mitigating factors in a fraudster’s favour in sentencing, a judge rejected a defence request for time served, saying a strong message had to be sent to denounce such lucrative crimes.
Saeh Abdullah Mohamed, 30, of rue Guy in Montreal, was found guilty after trial in March of seven counts of indictable fraud and one attempted fraud.
His crimes stemmed from his role as a courier for a granny scam that made the rounds in Fredericton and surrounding communities in late August.
A sentencing hearing was held in provincial court two weeks ago. The Crown argued for a jail term of 18-24 months, less credit for time spent on remand - which came to about 11 months after the customary 1½-to-one formula was applied to days in custody.
Defence lawyer Ben Reentovich pushed the court to impose a 12-month stint behind bars, but he also asked the court to consider an additional three-month sentence reduction for an administrative failure to hold a required bail review in Mohamed’s case 90 days after his initial detention.
If both defence positions were accepted, that would mean Mohamed would have already served his time.
He was back in court Monday for Judge Natalie LeBlanc’s decision.
She said the prosecution concedes Mohamed wasn’t the mastermind behind the scam, which saw several seniors in the capital region fleeced for a total of $78,000 in just a couple of days last summer.
In fact, the judge said, it appears other participants in the fraud ring took advantage of Mohamed, who has no prior criminal record.
Furthermore, the defendant didn’t benefit from the scam, LeBlanc said, and he’s expressed remorse for his actions and guilt over the shame and anxiety his arrest has caused his family.
The judge said Mohamed faces another potential penalty for his crimes beyond what the court will impose.
Mohamed was born and raised in Saudi Arabia, she said, and he immigrated to the United States first in pursuit of a better life, and then to Canada three years ago. He was denied refugee status but was granted protected status, but the court noted his immigration status is up in the air as a result of his convictions and he could face deportation.
LeBlanc said she also had to turn her mind to aggravating factors in the case, the most compelling of which was the profound and life-changing effects the scam had on its victims.
“All victims report feelings of embarrassment, anger and shame,” the judge said, noting all suffered significant losses that will affect their quality of life.
“Any financial loss could potentially be felt more acutely … The victims in these cases all have contributed their whole lives to society.”
She cited precedents that direct courts to prioritize denunciation of offences and deterrence of others from committing similar crimes when imposing sentences in significant fraud cases.
LeBlanc imposed a sentence of 18 months in jail, less remand credit.
Rejecting the reduction request
The judge declined the defence’s request for a sentence reduction due to the missed bail review.
Reentovich had argued such detention reviews were routinely overlooked and that the court needed to knock down Mohamed’s sentence to ensure something was done to correct the ongoing oversight.
But LeBlanc said there was no evidence presented to the court about missed bail reviews being a systemic issue.
However, she said reports of issues with those bail reviews “do cause the court some concern.”
In addition to the jail term, the judge ordered a one-year term of probation to follow, during which Mohamed is to have no contact with the victims.
LeBlanc also issued standalone orders of restitution, requiring the offender to make restitution for half of the losses suffered by each of the victims in the seven fraud counts, if he was ever in a position to pay.
While Mohamed can’t pay them back, the standalone order could be used in civil court to get a judgment against Mohamed, which in turn could be enforced if circumstances ever change and the offender finds himself with the resources to make good on the debts.
Evidence at trial showed the scam saw other unknown perpetrators elderly targets purporting to be a grandchild or other loved one claiming they’d been detained by police after a car accident or incident involving drugs.
Victims were told they needed to put up money to secure the “grandchild’s” release, and Mohamed would show up at their home, repeating a code word and collecting envelopes of cash.
The RCMP arrested another man along with Mohamed in Oromocto on Aug. 25 - Manasseh (MK) Kebede, 20, also of Montreal. He’s also been in custody since his arrest.
He pleaded guilty in February to the same eight charges for which Mohamed was sentenced Monday. Kebede’s sentencing hearing is set for Thursday.
The RCMP and some municipal police forces in New Brunswick issued public alerts last summer about a recurring fraud scheme sometimes referred to as a “granny scam.”
The Saint John Police Force arrested and charged four men, also from Quebec, for allegedly running the same scam last summer. There was no mention in Fredericton court proceedings if the Saint John suspects were part of the same fraud ring as Mohamed and Kebede.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.