An Ontario man is facing several charges in connection to a year-long police probe into “loan-sharking activity” at several Toronto-area casinos.
Ontario Provincial Police, in conjunction with several agencies, launched Project EVENING last spring after receiving information regarding extortion, money laundering and the illegal lending of money at a “criminal rate of interest” within those casinos.
A criminal rate of interest refers to an interest charge that exceeds the legal limit set under the criminal code, Acting Staff-Sgt. Jeffrey Del Guidice told Global News in a statement Tuesday.
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As of Jan. 1, that means an annual rate of interest exceeding 35 per cent, Del Guidice added.
Del Guidice would not specify how many casinos the alleged acts occurred at, or how many victims were involved given that information informs part of the evidence currently before the courts.
“What we can say is there is no acceptable rate of victimization and even one person affected is too many,” Del Guidice said.
On March 18, a 43-year-old Mississauga man was charged with criminal interest rate, extortion, laundering proceeds of crime and possession of property obtained by crime over $5,000.
The man is scheduled to appear in court on June 11.
“If you believe you may have been a victim or have information related to this investigation, we encourage you to call the OPP non-emergency line at 1-888-310-1122 or if you wish to remain anonymous contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477),” Del Guidice said.
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