Former Vancouver Canucks prospect and Surrey resident Prabhraj Rai has been charged with fraud following an investigation into a real estate investment arrangement.
Rai’s alleged fraud was of a “large scale,” according to a Surrey RCMP Financial Crimes Unit (FCU) statement Wednesday.
Rai is facing a civil lawsuit in relation to a real estate investment wherein it’s alleged he defrauded a realtor of more than $2.8 million. But police did not explicitly connect its case to the lawsuit.
“On Jan. 14, 2021, the Surrey FCU began an investigation into a fraud spanning from 2015 to 2021 after a victim came forward to police, alleging they had lost several million dollars in real-estate investment opportunities.
“Police gathered information and evidence as part of a long-term investigation and determined that between Oct. 9, 2015 and July 20 2018, the 34-year-old man allegedly committed large scale financial frauds,” stated Surrey RCMP.
Rai’s alleged actions took place after his hockey career ended in 2014 with the Evansville Icemen. Rai was selected in the fifth round of the 2008 NHL draft after playing in the Western Hockey League with the Seattle Thunderbirds and Prince George Cougars. He never played a game with the Canucks.
Rai was arrested Nov. 21 but has been released by the courts on conditions while awaiting his next court appearance, police said.
Rai is innocent of the charges unless they are proven in court.
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