A 29-year-old Winnipeg man has turned himself into Winnipeg Police, ending a months-long fraud investigation. 

 

Police say Hazem Nafez Alsaadi allegedly took dogs to eight different veterinarian hospitals in Winnipeg for treatment under a false name. 

After the treatment, police say he would leave the business without paying or he would adjust the point of sale machine so he could pay significantly less. 

"We believe this individual would be handed the debit machine and would manipulate it," Const. Jay Murray said. "If he was charged $228 he would back out into a menu and change it to charge himself 28 cents and by the time the difference was caught he'd already left the store." 

"There were other situations where he claimed his wallet was locked in the car or that if his card was declined he would come back and pay," Murray continued. "I think he was taking advantage of the generosity of these hospitals that don't charge someone for the treatment before." 

Murray says they believe Alsaadi was raising the dogs for sale. 

All of the frauds happened between May 2017 and August 2018, according to police. After a lengthy investigation, Murray says an arrest warrant was issued in November 2018, and Alsaadi turned himself in on Dec. 9. 

He says they haven't confirmed whether or not other vet clinics were hit, but it is something police are looking into. 

"If this sounds familiar to a hospital that was defrauded in a similar manner we encourage them to come forward and speak to the police or possibly the vet hospital community to establish whether or not this is the same person," Murray said.  

Alsaadi is facing eight counts of Fraud Under $5000 and was detained in custody. 

Police say the total amount of losses to the businesses is estimated at approximately $5,220.