Pair of Ontario men charged in scam that targeted UCalgary students
Posted Apr 7, 2025 10:22 am.
Last Updated Apr 7, 2025 6:59 pm.
Two men from Ontario are facing charges after police say they scammed a University of Calgary student.
Investigators say around noon on March 25, the victim was at UCalgary on University Drive NW when he was approached by two men claiming they worked at the school installing projectors and had excess inventory.
The suspects offered to sell the student a projector at a discounted price, according to police. The victim agreed to purchase a projector and accepted a ride to the bank from the suspects in their vehicle. Once at the bank, the victim withdrew the money to pay the suspects for the projector.
Police say the pair drove the student back to campus, and when he handed the money to the suspects, they quickly got into their vehicle and left the area without giving him a projector.
The victim reported the incident to campus security who a short time later, found the same two suspects near a student residence building interacting with a group of students and again, offering to sell discounted projectors.
A police investigation determined the suspects weren’t employees at UCalgary, and were posing as such in order to scam students.
Two days later, on March 27, police found the two people off-campus in a Collingwood parking lot. They were arrested and charged.
Officers seized several projectors, screens, and $9,000 in cash.
Yousef Hilal, 24, of Mississauga, Ont., and Arpit Rasela, 28, of Georgetown, Ont., have both been charged with one count of fraud under $5,000 and one count of proceeds of crime over $5,000.
The pair are set to appear in court later this month.
Anyone with information about these, or similar incidents, is asked to contact police at 403-266-1234 or tip anonymously through CrimeStoppers.
