Man used stolen credit cards to buy more than $46,000 of lumber: police

A Durham Regional Police Service arm badge is seen in this Feb. 2023 photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Doug Ives

A man from Milton, Ont. is facing several charges after allegedly using stolen credit cards to purchase nearly $50,000 worth of lumber from a business in Oshawa.

Durham Regional Police Service (DRPS) said between Jan. 9 and Feb. 1, 2023, a male purchased lumber products valued at more than $46,000 from a lumber company in Oshawa.

Police say the suspect arranged to have the items delivered to two separate commercial locations in Vaughan and Mississauga.

“Investigation revealed that the credit card data that was used was stolen from four separate victims,” DRPS said.

The male suspect was identified and arrested without incident on March 20.

Shahbaz Paracha, 37, of Milton is charged with one count each of fraud over $5,000 and possession of property obtained by crime over as well as four counts of unauthorized use of credit card data.

He was released on a promise to appear in court at a later date.

This investigation is ongoing and anyone with further information is asked to contact Det. Const. Reeves of DRPS’s Financial Crimes Unit at 1-888-579-1520, ext. 5241, or Crime Stoppers anonymously.