2 Brampton men facing 38 charges in fake taxi scam

Manvir Singh (left) and Syed Hunain are charged in a fake taxi scam investigation. (Peel Regional Police)

Two men are facing a combined 38 charges in connection with an alleged fake taxi scam in Peel Region, police say.

In a news release on Thursday, police said the incidents happened throughout 2024 and 2025 and usually took place in shopping mall parking lots.

A suspect, pretending to be a taxi passenger, would approach victims and ask for help, explaining to them that he was unable to pay the fare because the driver would only accept debit cards.

Once the victims agreed to help and handed over their debit cards, a second suspect, posing as the taxi driver, would discreetly exchange them for a stolen debit card from the same bank, police said.

“The suspect then used a point-of-sale terminal connected to a laptop to record victims’ PIN numbers,” police said.

Shortly after, the two suspects would allegedly go to bank machines to withdraw money from the victim’s bank account and commit additional fraud. Police believe the suspects used stolen vehicles during the alleged fraud.

One suspect, identified as 22-year-old Manvir Singh, was arrested on Oct. 9. He was charged with attempt to commit fraud, eight counts of fraud under $5,000, five counts of possession of property obtained by crime, and five counts of using stolen credit cards.

The other suspect, 25-year-old Syed Hunain, was taken into custody on Nov. 18. He was charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle, using a disguise with intent to use a stolen credit card, nine counts of fraud under $5,000, four counts each of possession of property obtained by crime and using stolen credit cards.

Police are asking anyone with information, including possible victims, to contact them at 905-453-3311 ext. 3335.