Multiple people arrested for scams targeting Waterloo Region homeowners

Waterloo regional police have made arrests in two separate fraud investigations with losses totalling a combined $1.7 million.

Waterloo regional police have made arrests in two separate fraud investigations with losses totalling a combined $1.7 million.

Both schemes targeted homeowners in Waterloo Region and other areas of Ontario.

Police released information about both of them on Thursday.

In the first case, police said the accused told homeowners they were entitled to money through a lawsuit against HVAC companies involving products they’d previously purchased, like air conditioners, furnaces, HEPA filters and water filtration systems.

Homeowners were told they could only receive the money through home renovations. Using high-pressure tactics, the accused allegedly convinced the victims to sign contracts.

Contractors working with the accused would then complete quick and often poor-quality renovations at the victims’ homes, police said.

Then in the days or weeks that followed, the accused would use the information from the contracts to take out liens against the victims’ homes for amounts ranging from $40,000 and $70,000, police said.