A Mississauga Lawyer Was Arrested At Pearson Airport For An Alleged Fraud Worth Over $10M

Peel Regional Police arrested and charged a Mississauga-based lawyer earlier this week at Toronto Pearson Airport for allegedly defrauding people for a total of over $10 million.

From June 2021 to December 2021, police said in an August 25 release that many people sought the services of Shahid Malik, the owner and operator of his namesake business, Shahid Malik Law Office in Mississauga, to settle their real estate transactions.

Police allege Malik got millions of dollars in trust in order to pay off his clients' outstanding mortgages. But, that money was never used to pay off those debts, which caused huge financial losses for all of the victims involved.

On Wednesday, August 24, police arrested the 41-year-old Brampton resident on an outstanding warrant. Police arrested Malik at Pearson Airport as he was flying back into Canada.

Officers charged Malik with defrauding the public and breach of trust, and he appeared in court for a bail hearing on Thursday.

"Mr. Malik used his position of trust to defraud a substantial amount of money from hard-working people in our community," Superintendent Hubie Hiltz said in the release.

"This investigation and arrest demonstrated our commitment to pursuing offenders, preventing further victimization and the value of collaboration with the Canada Border Services Agency."

Investigators on the case believe that there are more victims in connection to Malik's alleged scams.

Anyone with any information at all is asked to reach out to the Fraud Bureau at 905-453-2121, ext. 3335. Anonymous tips can also be sent to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at peelcrimestoppers.ca.