Saskatoon police arrest man with alleged Russian organized crime connections

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A man who police say is affiliated with a Russian organized crime group was arrested in Saskatoon and charged with fraud and identity theft.

Saskatoon police said they were notified on March 10 that Alexander Alexidze, a 48-year-old Georgian national wanted by several authorities in Canada and the United States, was living in Saskatoon under “one of many” assumed identities.

“Investigation led police to attend an address in the 400 block of Pendygrasse Road on May 14, where the suspect was arrested,” Saskatoon Police Service said on Wednesday in a news release.

Police seized multiple false and forged documents after executing a search warrant of the address following his arrest.

Alexidze is charged with procurement of false identity documents, possession of credit cards obtained by the commission of an offence, possession of the proceeds of crime over $5,000, possession of citizenship documents for a fraudulent purpose, fraud over $5,000 and the use of forged documents.

Police say more charges are expected as investigations continue in other jurisdictions.

Alexidze has faced similar charges in the past.

In 2015, he was arrested in Cleveland and convicted of visa fraud and served nine months in prison before being deported by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to face multiple identity theft and fraud charges in Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario, according to an ICE news release.

ICE described Alexidze as a “documented Russian mafia associate” who was deported to Canada to face charges for crimes allegedly committed between 2013 and 2015, some under the alias Alex Row.

He will be in provincial court again on June 1.