A 45-year-old Ottawa man has been arrested and charged following an investigation into the alleged theft of thousands of mobile phones, with losses exceeding $7 million, according to the Ottawa Police Service.
Rabih Kassis, 45, of Ottawa, was charged by the service's Financial Crimes Unit, which examined alleged thefts and fraudulent activity spanning more than three years, from June 2022 to September 2025.
Police say the investigation began after a complaint was received and was carried out in cooperation with Bell Canada.
What police allege happened
According to the Ottawa Police Service, investigators allege the accused repeatedly threatened, harassed and extorted his sister — who was employed by Bell Canada at the time — in order to obtain mobile phones from the company through fraudulent means.
Police allege the phones were then handed over to the accused and subsequently sold.
The police service did not detail the specific charges laid against Kassis in its public release.
How the public can help
Investigators are encouraging anyone with information about the case to come forward. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Stoppers toll-free at 1-800-222-8477 or online at crimestoppers.ca.
Residents can also view, download and interact with data released by the Ottawa Police Service through its Community Safety Data portal at data.ottawapolice.ca.
The service is also encouraging residents to register their information and the locations of their security cameras at CAMSafe.ca, a program that allows police to know where cameras exist in the community so footage can be requested to support investigations.
Non-emergency contact with the Ottawa Police Service is available by phone at 613-236-1222, with TTY service for the deaf, deafened and hard of hearing at 613-232-1123.
