Minister of Public Safety Stockwell Day commends Project SWEEP's success in tackling counterfeiting and fraud crimes

October 4, 2007 — Today, the Honourable Stockwell Day, Minister of Public Safety, released the following statement regarding the seizure by the RCMP, in cooperation with various partners, of nearly 5,000 counterfeit cheques, money orders and other financial instruments across Canada since April 2007. The estimated face value of the items seized as part of Project SWEEP is more than $13 million.

"I would like to commend the RCMP and all its various partners, including the Canada Border Services Agency and the United States Postal Inspection Service, for their collaboration and excellent work throughout this operation.

Counterfeiting and fraud have far-reaching and harmful repercussions for families. These activities also represent a very real threat to Canadian businesses and the economy. This operation is a reflection of our collective determination to take action against financial and economic crimes, including counterfeiting, fraud, market manipulation and identity theft.

I encourage all Canadians to educate themselves about these crimes, to report suspicious activities and to take the necessary steps to protect themselves.

Protecting Canadian families is a top priority for Canada's New Government, which is why we announced a plan this week to protect Canadians from identity theft by introducing Criminal Code amendments to give our police the tools they need to crack down on identity theft crimes.

The RCMP and its partners have our full support in their efforts to guard against the harmful effects of these criminal activities."

Information:

Mélisa Leclerc
Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Stockwell Day
Minister of Public Safety
613-991-2863