Ottawa police are now investigating more than 20 reports involving alleged downtown parking scams, with police saying the reports appear to be connected to the same individual. “Right now, in the reports we see one individual’s name, we haven’t completed the investigation to say if it’s exactly him or if it’s a fake account,” said detective Shaun Wahbeh with the financial crimes unit. Noah Banks and Kathryn Manley say they knew the man they dealt with by different names, but both independently identified him to CTV News as Samin Yasar after meeting him in person. Banks says he paid $3,900 for a year of parking after being shown a space at 400 Albert St. Manley says she paid $3,850 and used a visitor parking space at the building for about a month before her access was cut off. “When you meet someone face to face and you look in their eyes, I felt he was trustworthy and I was wrong,” Manley said. Banks says he eventually posted about his experience online after his parking spot never materialized. “I felt I needed to do more so I posted anonymously on Reddit and Facebook and that exploded,” he said. That’s when others started reaching out, including Deepa Rao, a government worker who lives in Richmond. “What used to be a 45-minute commute, is an hour and 45 minutes so that made it impossible to use public transit,” she said. Rao never met Yasar in person and says she knew him as Zeyad, but the contract she signed was from Bytown and Co., the same one as Banks. She says she was about to pay more than $800 for a parking spot on Cooper Street back in July, before her bank flagged the e-transfer. “While I’m on hold with them, I do a Google search of parking scams, and I add the company’s name to it,” she said. “The summary that came up mentioned how there might be a parking scam going on.” CTV News also spoke with another person who says Yasar showed her a parking spot on Slater Street. She says she paid $1,800 up front, but the deal fell apart when she could not access the space. “Parking is a premium, so people are looking for a parking spot close to work,” said Wahbeh. “I hate to say it’s an easy target, but it’s what’s hot right now.” “Whether it’s concert tickets, whether it’s property, it’s buyer beware. You really have to do your due diligence and make sure it’s a legitimate purchase.” CTV News reached out to Yasar about the allegations. He denies it was a scam, calling it a business dispute. He says some people have received refunds, including Banks. He tells CTV News tenants at 400 Albert St. rented parking spaces to him but failed to provide the fobs required to access them. Yasar describes these types of subleases as a “grey area” and says they happen regularly. In a message to CTV News, he says, “No building in Ontario, especially ones that are fully owned by a holding company allows their parking spots or apartments to be subleased but it is a transaction that still takes place on Marketplace, Kijiji and other platforms on a daily basis.” Centurion Property Associates, which manages 400 Albert St., previously told CTV News that Yasar has no affiliation with the company or property and had no authority to rent or sublet parking there. No charges have been laid. Rao says she hopes speaking publicly will encourage others to take extra steps to verify a parking arrangement before sending money. “I was sought out by this guy and certainly I want to help other people find out that there is in fact this scam going on,” said Rao.
