An Ontario man has been charged after police say he falsely claimed that his unique animals have been not viable for taxidermy because of a refrigeration failure in an effort to acquire insurance coverage funds.
Durham Regional Police Service investigators have been contacted by an insurance coverage firm on Sept. 11, 2023, concerning a number of claims they believed to be fraudulently filed by Artistry in Motion Taxidermy.
They stated that the proprietor of the business bought unique animals, like tigers, lions, and monkeys, after they died of pure causes, for artwork items.
The first declare was filed in May 2022. In it, the proprietor claimed that he misplaced $500,000 value of lifeless unique animals because of a weather-related refrigeration system failure.
More than a 12 months later, in June of 2023, the proprietor made a second declare for one more refrigeration system failure, which he stated resulted in a monetary lack of over $700,000 of animals.
An investigation revealed the suspect fraudulently produced invoices, created fictitious zoos and safaris, and inflated the worth of the deceased animals.
Cyril Dsouza, 65, of Uxbridge, Ont., is dealing with two expenses of fraud over $5,000 and two expenses for forging paperwork. He was launched on bail.
Anyone with info is requested to contact the Durham police’s Financial Crimes Unit at 1-888-579-1520, ext. 5729, or Crime Stoppers anonymously.
