Wife of gunman blames alleged $1.2m mortgage fraud for tragedy
A fatal shooting in a Toronto office has been linked to an alleged mortgage fraud scheme. The incident resulted in the deaths of two people and the shooter himself.
Alisa Pogorelovsky, the wife of the gunman Alan Kats, released a statement through her lawyers explaining that her husband believed the victims, Arash Missaghi, 54, and Samira Yousefi, 44, were responsible for defrauding their family in a mortgage investment scheme. Kats also died in the shooting.
“[He] could not handle losing our life savings, and that is what led to this tragic event,” Pogorelovsky said.
Court records show Pogorelovsky and her husband had sued Missaghi, Yousefi and others after losing $1.28 million in an alleged syndicated mortgage fraud scheme.
The allegations against Missaghi and Yousefi had not been proven in court.
Missaghi had previously faced charges in 2018 for his alleged involvement in a larger, $17 million mortgage fraud scheme dubbed Project Bridle Path by investigators.
"The events that gave rise to the litigation that we are involved in with Missaghi and Yousefi have devastated and now destroyed our family," Pogorelovsky wrote. "I hope that someday my family will be able to recover."
According to Pogorelovsky's statement, her husband left a note explaining "what he was thinking and why he acted as he did."
An image of the note shared by her lawyer read: "My death is in the hands of Samira Yousefi, Arash Missaghi" and two other names, adding "Stop these criminals."
Read next: Experts sound alarm on mortgage fraud
The shooting occurred on Monday afternoon in the North York area of Toronto at a business that handles financial transactions. Police reported that four people were inside the office at the time. Both Missaghi and Yousefi died at the scene, while Kats also succumbed to his injuries.
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