Two Scarborough residents have been charged after police linked them to three alleged distraction thefts in Winnipeg and Selkirk on Canada Day. Investigators say genuine gold necklaces were targeted and replaced with imitation jewellery.

A 26-year-old woman and a 27-year-old man from Scarborough were arrested after several women reported being approached by strangers offering jewellery. Police allege the suspects used hugs and close physical contact to remove real necklaces while leaving fake ones behind.

The first incident involved a woman in her 60s outside her Winnipeg home. A similar theft was later reported outside an assisted-living complex in Selkirk. A third woman in her 80s became suspicious during an attempted encounter in southwest Winnipeg and left before anything was taken.

Police later located a vehicle with Ontario plates and searched a Winnipeg residence, where officers said they found cash along with real and imitation jewellery. Some recovered items were returned to their owners.

The pair face multiple robbery, fraud-conspiracy and property-related charges. Police are warning residents to avoid physical contact with strangers offering gifts or jewellery and to report suspicious encounters immediately.

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Originally published on Canadian Fraud News.