Four facing fraud charges after cheque from N.W.T. jail allegedly deposited 36 times
RCMP release says that as many as 15 people may have deposited fraudulent cheques, some unknowingly
Four people are facing fraud charges related to altering a cheque from the North Slave Correctional Centre and depositing it 36 different times, according to a news release from N.W.T. RCMP.
According to the release, sent Tuesday afternoon, a cheque issued by the North Slave Correctional Centre's Inmate Trust Fund was "reproduced, altered and deposited 36 times into various bank accounts" between December 2019 and February 2020.
The total amount deposited was $23,407.92.
An inmate trust fund is essentially a bank account used by an inmate while incarcerated. Once they are released, the amount remaining in their account is returned to them.
"The matter was reported to the NT RCMP Financial Crimes Unit in January 2020 and an extensive investigation was launched," the release reads, adding that production orders were issued to four different financial institutions as part of the investigation.
"Through the investigation, the NT RCMP Financial Crimes Unit discovered that up to 15 people may have been involved in cashing the forged cheques – some unknowingly," the release continues.
Four individuals — two from Yellowknife, and two from Behchoko — have each been charged with fraud and uttering a forged document as part of the investigation.
Uttering is a criminal charge meaning knowingly passing on or using a forged or fraudulent document.
A warrant is currently out for one suspect's arrest. The other three individuals have been released and are expected in court on August 25.