Fraud allure
iStockphoto/rudall30

The operators of Calgary-based currency exchange firm Canex Forex Ltd. have been charged in connection with an alleged $40-million fraud and money laundering scheme.

The federal anti-money laundering unit, the Integrated Money Laundering Investigative Team (IMLIT), laid 29 charges against the firm, 29 charges against Saba Sarrafi of Coquitlam, B.C., and 27 charges against Kevin Sarrafi of Calgary.

The allegations include 20 charges of fraud against both men and the firm, money laundering charges, and various violations of the reporting and record-keeping provisions of anti-money laundering rules.

IMLIT is a partnership that includes the RCMP, the Canada Revenue Agency’s criminal investigations division and the federal government’s Forensic Accounting Management Group.

According to police, the charges stem from a scheme involving alleged fraud against several financial institutions “by transferring more than $40 million into Canada from the United Arab Emirates via a complex network of shell companies and third-party bank accounts.”

“The money laundering scheme was designed to disguise the source and nature of the funds, and to deliberately defeat the reporting requirements of [anti-money laundering rules],” police said.

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

Police said Kevin Sarrafi has been arrested, and a Canada-wide warrant has been issued for Saba Sarrafi.

“The support provided by FINTRAC, the Forensic Accounting Management Group, and the Canadian Bankers Association was instrumental in advancing this case,” the RCMP said in a release.