Arrest made in connection to immigration fraud in Canada

It is alleged that, Toronto resident named Giovanni Germinario shown in the picture above was charged with defrauding more than $2.3 million from 600 prospective Filipino immigrants who had paid up to $10,000 each for assistance in coming to Canada as temporary foreign workers.

Between 2007 and 2013, Giovanni Germinario along with two Regina residents gave false job offer documents to foreign nationals.  Officials claim the accused targeted people applying for permanent residence in Canada. If convicted, the individuals could be made to pay up to $100,000 in fines and could be sentenced to a maximum of 10 years in prison.

This incident is the latest in a series of cases of immigration fraud that have become public over recent months.

• In January, 2016, it was found that a man in Halifax, Nova Scotia had helped thousands pretend they were in Canada to get around citizenship rules.
• Last year, a man in Vancouver was found to have produced altered passports and fraudulent identities for up to 1,200 individuals.
• Earlier in 2015, three Toronto residents were charged with acting as unauthorized immigration consultants and providing false information to clients and government officials.

While law enforcement authorities have been successful in discovering cases of fraud such as those highlighted above, it is entirely possible that other unscrupulous individuals currently remain undetected. Therefore, individuals wishing to come to Canada on a permanent or temporary basis are encouraged to perform background checks on representatives who offer services that are fraudulent.