B.C. man charged after $550K stolen from City of Hamilton in cyber scam

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Cops have charged a 32-year-old B.C. man after a cyber scam led to the misappropriation of more than a half-million dollars from a City of Hamilton affiliate.

In a news release issued Wednesday, Hamilton Police said the city experienced a cyberattack in February 2024 that “severely impacted internal systems and limited employee access to routine software and information.”

During the recovery period, police said manual workarounds were implemented to maintain essential operations, including vendor payments.

“This created an environment more vulnerable to human error and external manipulation,” Hamilton Police said.

In March 2024, a staff member at a municipal housing affiliate received what police said appeared to be a legitimate email from a known contractor. The email contained altered banking details for a vendor payment.

Believing the information to be accurate, police said the staff member processed an electronic transfer for more than $550,000 — an amount far exceeding the actual invoice — into a bank account at a financial institution in Surrey, B.C.

“The discrepancy was discovered later that month when the legitimate vendor reported not receiving payment,” Hamilton Police said. “An internal review, supported by the city’s auditor general and an independent forensic accounting firm, revealed that the funds had been deposited into an account connected to a numbered company.

“That company was traced back to a 32-year-old Surrey man, who quickly dispersed the funds across multiple newly opened accounts, including personal and business accounts at various Canadian banks.”

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Hamilton Police investigators, along with law enforcement partners in Surrey and Edmonton, gathered surveillance video, voice recordings and banking records to identify the suspect and track the movement of funds.

One account was frozen, which allowed for the recovery of about $417,000, police said. However, the city sustained a financial loss of more than $130,000 in addition to forensic and legal expenses.

According to police, the city has indicated it will pursue restitution.

The accused, who was not identified, turned himself in Monday to Hamilton Police. He was arrested and later released on an undertaking with several conditions, including surrendering his passport.