HA Barletta and McIlquham loot went into real estate

The OPP held a news conference Dec 2019 to crow about 228 charges against 28 in Operation Hobart, a two-year probe of an illegal gambling ring run by HAMC and mafioso. Charges flopped miserably.

Cops describe a pyramid with hundreds of agents at various levels who were assigned code names and solicited bets, took commissions and passed a cut up the organization. At the top of the pyramid were Robert Barletta of the Montreal Chapter and Craig McIlquham of the Niagara Chapter. Collection was "enforced through violence.” Michael Deabaitua-Schulde was being watched by cops when he was whacked outside a Mississauga gym. Some suppose that murder was an internal matter.

Craig McIquham

While the boys walked on criminal charges, civil forfeiture is on the hunt for proceeds of crime from their $160m operation. 14 websites brought in that amount over 6 years. McIlquham, 51, hid his loot in secret locations. In a hidden trap at his Toronto condo, cops found $40k in Canadian cash, $1,800 in US cash, a Brazilian visa in his name and ID with his photo but another man’s name. One of his vehicles in the underground parking lot returned $11k, a gun and a cellphone with evidence of bookmaking. From another vehicle cops seized a gold bar worth $206k. At another of his properties, cops found 27, 1 ounce gold coins in a black satin Louis Vuitton bag.

Most of the assets sought by the government are properties, many of them luxury homes. Parking money in real estate has long been a preferred way for criminals to launder money in Canada say experts. McIlquham and his wife, Jessica Bowman, bought four properties for $5.1m between June 2004 and December 2018. Bowman also owned a payday loan business that recorded $1.9m in deposits over 5 years.
See ----->HA Robert Barletta ensnared in dueling lawsuits
See ----->Michael Deabaitua-Schulde murder trial over