A Canadian man wanted for more than a year in connection with a massive grandparent scam has been arrested in Nicaragua.
Jimmy Ylimaki, 36, was apprehended in Nicaragua and removed to the U.S., according to a press release from the Vermont district attorney.
Ylimaki is facing up to 20 years in prison for his alleged role in the scam. He is described in court documents as having operated as an “attorney,” pretending to be a lawyer requesting money from potential elderly victims.
The scam network Ylimaki is alleged to be a part of operated out of Montreal, according to police. It allegedly scammed hundreds of victims, mostly American seniors, out of $30 million.
The alleged head of the network, Gareth West, posed as a real estate mogul. He was the subject of a CBC investigation in June 2025
When charges were first laid against the group last March, police arrested two dozen people in the Montreal area, but West and Ylimaki were on the run.
West was arrested at an Airbnb in Saint-Colomban, Que., in July 2025.
Ylimaki was the only member of the alleged group of scammers who was still at large.
In the summer of 2025, a source with knowledge of Ylimaki’s movements told CBC that he was living in a coastal city in Costa Rica, a place where, before he was charged, he had featured in his social media posts.
After West was arrested, the source said Ylimaki left Costa Rica and travelled to Nicaragua.
How CBC investigated an alleged grandparent scam mogul
Ylimaki is now being held in the U.S. The other alleged members of the scam are currently contesting their extradition to the U.S. Extradition proceedings are ongoing.
The allegations against Ylimaki have not yet been tested in court. He appeared in a U.S. court in Vermont on Wednesday and entered a plea of not guilty.
More to come.
