City recovers all funds lost in fraud scheme

The City of Saskatoon has now recovered all of the money it lost to a fraud scheme back in the summer.

An Ontario Superior Court Justice ruled Friday that $335,000 in city money be returned.

This means the city has recovered all $1.04 million it lost after falling victim to a scam.

“This is exactly the outcome we have wanted for the past three months,” said City Manager Jeff Jorgenson. “We are grateful to the court and for the efforts made by many people and organizations to recover this stolen money.”

On August 12, a fraudster impersonated the chief financial officer of a construction firm the city was doing business with, asking for a change in banking information.

That request was granted, and resulted in the money being deposited into the fraudster’s account.

Jorgenson said the city is currently finalizing the costs of the recovery and has already installed tighter accounting measures at city hall.