Montreal man guilty in U.S. court after hiding in Nicaragua

A Montreal man stood in a U.S. federal court on Oct. 19 and changed his plea from not guilty to guilty in a major elder fraud case. Jimmy Ylimaki admitted his role in a grandparent scam that targeted American seniors.

Prosecutors allege Ylimaki acted as a "closer" for a network run by Gareth West. Ylimaki posed as a lawyer representing victims' relatives. He told elderly callers that a family member was in jail and needed bail money. Over a 67-week period, he collected more than $367,000 from these victims.

The scheme reportedly generated tens of millions of dollars. West ran a real estate business in Ontario and Quebec while operating call centers in the Montreal area. Thirty-one other defendants face U.S. charges but remain in Canada, where they are fighting extradition.

Ylimaki became a fugitive in June 2024. During a police raid on a West-owned building, officers caught him hiding in a downstairs shower. He had been calling victims moments before the team arrived. He fled to Costa Rica shortly after the raid.

In March 2025, police arrested two dozen associates in Montreal. West was later caught in Saint-Colomban, Que., in July 2025. Ylimaki stayed in Costa Rica for several months. A source told CBC he lived in a coastal city while U.S. authorities tracked him.

A detention motion filed in March 2026 explains why Ylimaki moved to Nicaragua. He researched extradition treaties and found that Costa Rica cooperated with the U.S., while Nicaragua often refused requests. He crossed the border to avoid capture. U.S. agents apprehended him in Nicaragua in March 2026 and moved him to the United States. Details of that operation have not been released.

Ylimaki will be sentenced in January. He faces a maximum prison term of 20 years. Prosecutors noted that the group often used cryptocurrency, which makes it hard to track the full value of the money moved.