‘An organized operation:’ Toronto police say 5 suspects face dozens of charges in distraction thefts targeting elderly victims

Top (left to right): Aura-Floria Florian, 40, Andreea Popa, 32, Dumitrita Paunoiu, 49. Bottom (left to right): Constantin Florian, 39, Eugen Catruna, 52, Virgil Barbu, 44, Vasile-Virgil Rata, 46.

Two men and three women are facing charges in connection with an ongoing investigation into distraction thefts targeting elderly victims, Toronto police say.

Police said between Dec. 10, 2023 and Oct. 19, 2024, suspects attended “several banks and retail stores” for the purpose of carrying out distraction thefts.

Police allege that the suspects specifically targeted elderly victims using “various techniques” to obtain PINs, and steal wallets and bank cards.

“The suspects would then attend various banks, withdrawing funds from the victims' accounts to fraudulently purchase pre-paid credit cards, that were then used to buy high-end luxury items and electronics,” police said in a news release.

Investigators subsequently executed a search warrant in connection with the investigation and seized a number of items, including eight iPhone 15 Pro Max devices, 50 smart watches, 56 bottles of designer perfume, 21 fraudulent pre-paid Vanilla credit cards totalling $10,500, $23,000 in Canadian currency, lock-picking tools, 32 OLG Pro-Line tickets, two foil lined booster bags, and multiple fraudulent passports. Police said they also recovered four fraudulently obtained vehicles that were shipped overseas. The value of the vehicles, police said, totalled about $250,000.

The suspects have been identified by police as Constantin Florian, 39, of Montreal, Virgil Barbu, 44, of Laval, Quebec, Aura-Floria Florian, 40, of no fixed address, and Dumitrita Pauniou, 49, of Milton, and Andreea Popa, 32, of no fixed address.

Two other suspects remain outstanding, including Vasile-Virgil Rata, 46, and Eugen Catruna, 52, both of no fixed address, police said.

The suspects face a combined 96 charges, including dozens of counts of theft and fraud.

“Police believe that there may be more elderly people who have been victimized by this group, as this appears to be an organized operation,” the police news release continued.

Investigators have now released images of the five suspects who were arrested and the two men who are outstanding.