Police ask for help to locate contractor fraud suspects

UPDATE: All suspects wanted by police in these cases have now been arrested.

The Calgary Police Service is asking for the public’s help to locate two people who are wanted on warrants in connection with multiple contractor scams that targeted senior citizens in south Calgary.

The two people were charged following an investigation that started after police received a report that a man approached a senior suffering from Alzheimers in October 2015 and offered to perform general roof maintenance on the senior’s home. The senior paid over $8,500, however, no work was ever completed on the roof.

During the investigation, police identified three other elderly victims who investigators believe were approached by the same man and sometimes other suspects working with him. The suspects offered to clean the victims’ eavestroughs and do other odd jobs around their homes.

While working on the homes, the man claimed that he had noticed several defects on the victims’ homes that needed to be fixed. Over the course of several months, the victims paid the suspects a combined total of over $37,000 for work that appears to never have been done.

None of the suspects were licenced to carry out work in Calgary.

Police have charged three individuals in connection with these incidents.

Kenneth GLIDDON, 55, of Calgary, was arrested and charged with two counts of fraud over $5,000 and three counts of fraud under $5,000. He will next appear in court on Wednesday, June 8, 2016.

Warrants have been issued for the remaining two individuals as police have been unable to locate them.

Geralyn PLAVIAK, 58, of Calgary, is charged with two counts of fraud over $5,000 and two counts of fraud under $5,000. She is described as Caucasian, 5’2” tall, with a slim build, brown hair, green eyes and glasses.

Michael ARSENAULT, 55, of Calgary is charged with one count of fraud over $5,000. He is described as Caucasian, 6’0” tall, with a slim build, brown hair and blue eyes.

The investigation is still ongoing and anyone with information on these incidents or the whereabouts of the two outstanding suspects is asked to contact the Calgary Police Service non-emergency line at 403-266-1234. Tips can also be left anonymously by contacting Crime Stoppers using any of the following methods:

TALK: 1-800-222-8477
TYPE: www.calgarycrimestoppers.org
TEXT: tttTIPS to 274637

Calgarians who suspect they may be the victim of contractor fraud are also encouraged to contact the police. Tips for how to protect yourself from fraud when hiring a contractor can be found on The City of Calgary Newsroom.

Case # Multiple/4348