A 90-year-old woman was among the area residents who fell victim to a Windsor man who police allege was fraudulently selling medical oxygen purifiers, warranties and service packages.
"Who knows what could have happened to these people if they didn't have their oxygen properly," Essex OPP Sgt. Rick Tonial said Monday.
"It isn't simple money here that we're talking. We're talking about health and welfare of our elderly here. It's serious."
Tonial said the man was using the company name Medair and, in the cases investigated by the OPP, told people he was taking over from a company that had gone out of business. Tonial said the victims were elderly or younger with respiratory problems.
"He would tell them they either had to sign a new warranty, ask them for some more money or he would actually exchange units, give them an old one and take a new one," Tonial said. "So we have people actually out there either they're missing their oxygen unit right now or they're out thousands of dollars."
Essex OPP have charged Dennis Lee, 33, with two counts of fraud over $5,000, four counts of fraud under $5,000 and four counts of theft under $5,000.
Lee faces about 20 charges in Windsor and Essex County, mostly for fraud.
In Amherstburg, Lee was arrested for two counts of fraud over $5,000 earlier this month after an 82-year-old Amherstburg man was allegedly defrauded of about $60,000. Det. Sgt. Don Brown of the Amherstburg Police Service said that case does not involve medical equipment and for the sake of the victim, police are not releasing details.
LaSalle police have charged Lee with two counts of fraud under $5,000 and one count of theft under $5,000 in connection with a December complaint over an air purification system.
Windsor police have laid four fraud under $5,000 charges and one mischief charge against Lee.
Windsor police Staff Sgt. Gerald Corriveau of the financial crimes unit said police believe Lee used a sales list from a company that went out of business to befriend seniors and take advantage of them. He said in one case Lee is alleged to have told one of the Windsor victims that he wished he had one of the machines for his sick mother. He is alleged to have borrowed money from the victim even though his mother was not sick and he did purchase a machine, Corriveau said. In other cases, Corriveau said, Lee was playing "musical air purifiers" by taking a unit from one person and selling it to another.
Victims ranged in age from their 40s to 90. Tonial is expecting others will come forward. "We believe there's more victims out there."
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