There are 145,000 stories in the Royal City, and this is some of them. Looking at a week’s worth of media releases from the Guelph Police Service, there’s a lot going on in our little city crime-wise speaking, so let’s run down some of the charges, issues, and requests for information from the Guelph Police Service over the last seven days.
***Please note that not all offenses and police calls are reported in the daily Guelph Police media release.
Assault
Police are investigating an assault that took place on Eugene Drive on Monday at approximately 5:30 am. The suspect is unknown but described as a male with black or brown skin, 5’6”-5’10”, slim build and shoulder length dreadlocks and wearing a black and blue t-shirt, jacket and black and white Nike Air Jordan shoes. Police would like to talk to anyone with external cameras in the area who might have footage of the suspect. If you do, contact Detective Constable Mike Gatto of the Special Victims Unit at 519-824-1212, ext. 7253 or email mgatto [at] guelphpolice.ca.
A 38-year-old Guelph man was charged with assault, two counts of criminal harassment and breaching an undertaking after two different women were approached by the same man downtown. He grabbed one woman by the forearm on Macdonell Street and repeatedly said, “I’m touching you” before following her and later tugging on her backpack. Then he approached a different woman sitting on a chair in Market Square and stood over her, making her unable to get out of the chair. She was able to climb over the arm of the chair and walk away, but the man followed until he saw she was walking to the police station.
A 35-year-old Stratford man was charged with assault to resist arrest and breaching probation after police were called to reports of a man trespassing at a home near Gordon and Dormie on Tuesday night. He was wanted in Stratford for resisting a police officer and breaching probation there too.
Break-Ins
On Thursday morning, police were called to a business near Willow and Westwood after someone smashed the glass front door and made away with three tablets with a total value of approximately $1,200 sometime in the night. If you have any information call Constable Jen Probst at 519-824-1212, ext. 7296, or email her at jprobst {at] guelphpolice.ca.
More than $20,000 worth of fragrances were stolen from a business at Clair and Farley at around 3:40 am on Friday. Video surveillance showed three suspects arriving in a silver SUV, possibly an older-model Acura RDX, and entering the business by breaking a window. They were observed loading a large number of perfumes and colognes into bags before fleeing through the same broken window. All three were wearing masks, gloves and sweaters. If you have any information, call Constable Cameron Keddie at 519-824-1212, ext. 7431, or email him at ckeddie [at] guelphpolice.ca.
At around 5 am on Monday, three males dressed all in black rammed a black pickup into a loading bay door to enter a business at Gordon and Wellington. They filled garbage bags with an unknown amount of high-end product and then escaped in the pick-up, and narrowly avoided colliding with cruisers in the process. If you have any information, call Constable Adam Shutsa at 519-824-1212, ext. 7335, or email him at ashutsa [at] guelphpolice.ca.
A 28-year-old Hanover man was arrested Tuesday and charged with break and enter for a February 4 break-in at a building near Stone and Scottsdale and was identified by a hand print left inside one of the units.
Drugs
Nothing to report here.
Fraud
Police are advising the community that they’ve been seeing an increase in fraud reports in the last month, specifically resale scams for Taylor Swift Eras Tour tickets, which are very hard to come by even though the Toronto dates are still over a year away. In a typical scenario, a scammer will create multiple fake social media profiles – either with stolen identity information and pictures or fabricated entirely – as a way to mask their true identity. They then post the fake or nonexistent concert tickets for sale online.
Once a potential victim inquires about the tickets, the scammer will chat online directly with them, allowing the scammer the chance to pressure or persuade the victim into falling for their fraud. Arrangements for the delivery of the tickets will be discussed, often by asking for the victim’s email address associated to their Ticketmaster account.
However, once a deposit has been sent via e-transfer to the email address provided by the scammer, the scammer may stall the victim with excuses before stopping all communications, and then either block the victim’s account or delete the fraudulent account altogether.
Police advice that you to always meet the seller in person and at a public place. Prior to meeting, take the time to do your own research, as scammers are more likely to pressure buyers if they don’t send the money quickly enough. Be sure to inspect the item first prior to providing any deposit or payment, and avoid making transactions through Interac E-Transfer, because once the money has been deposited, the transaction cannot be reversed and likely will never be returned. And remember, if a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.
If you think you might be a victim of any fraud, call the Guelph Police Non-Emergency line is 519-824-5154, or contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 or online at their website.
Impaired Driving
A 30-year-old Kitchener man was charged with impaired operation and stunt driving, plus his driver’s licence was suspended for 90 days, after police conducting a traffic stop on Woodlawn Road West caught a vehicle doing 106 kilometres per hour in a 60 zone on Thursday.
A 50-year-old Guelph woman was charged with impaired operation, plus her driver’s licence was suspended for 90 days, after her Dodge Challenger went off the road and rolled over in the ditch before coming to rest on its wheels on Tuesday night at Woodlawn and Elmira. The driver has an empty wine bottle in the car.
A 48-year-old Guelph male was arrested for impaired operation after two men were seen leaving a licensed establishment on Woodlawn Road East and getting into a vehicle. Testing at police headquarters showed that he had more than the legal amount of alcohol in his system.
A 40-year-old Guelph male was charged with impaired operation and stunt driving after a police patrol clocked a vehicle doing 86 kilometres per hour in a 50 zone on Elmira Road near Woodlawn. The driver failed a roadside test.
Last Saturday morning, a 27-year-old man was arrested for impaired driving, failing to stop at a collision, driving while suspended, careless driving and breaching probation after a two-vehicle collision at Surrey and Gordon. He left the scene of the crash after leaving his phone number with the other driver.
A 38-year-old Guelph male was arrested for impaired driving and having cannabis readily available to a driver last Saturday night after police stopped a car on Wellington and smelled the strong odour of cannabis. An open package of cannabis gummies was also observed inside the vehicle, and the driver had more than the legal amount of alcohol in his system when tested.
Theft
A 30-year-old Hamilton woman is charged with possessing stolen property over $5,000, occupying a stolen motor vehicle, operation while impaired, refusing to comply with a demand, driving without a licence and five counts of breaching probation. Police were dispatched to the area of Meyer and Lincoln at 8 pm Wednesday where a woman in a cube van was yelling at pedestrians about drugs. It turned out that the van was stolen from Toronto, and after searching the driver police found her fanny pack with two glass pipes and a syringe of suspected fentanyl inside. She fell asleep several times in the cruiser.
A 39-year-old Guelph male is charged with assault to resist arrest and several property, drug and weapons counts as well as six counts of breaching court orders – nearly 20 charges in total – after police had a stolen vehicle under surveillance at a parking lot near Speedvale and Elmira last Friday. The man tried to flee on foot before becoming involved in a physical struggle, during which three officers sustained minor injuries. A search of the vehicle revealed pepper spray, several knives, small amounts of suspected fentanyl and crystal meth and suspected stolen property including mail and identification.
Traffic
A 46-year-old Guelph man was charged with driving while prohibited after the licence plate was flagged by an automated reader last Friday afternoon. The vehicle, which was registered to the driver’s mother, was seized for 45 days.
An elderly woman was transported to hospital for observation after driving through the front of a business at a Silvercreek North plaza last Saturday. The woman, who’s in her 80s, was attempting to park when she lost control of the car, mounted the curb and drove through the front of a business.The driver was transported to hospital to be checked out, but no injuries were reported. No charges were laid either.
Other Notes
Several people reported a nude male masturbating in a black Mazda 3 in a plaza near Stone and Edinburgh on Thursday evening at 6 pm. The male, described as white with dark hair, left after being confronted by witnesses. Anyone with information is asked to call Constable Anna-Maria DePaepe at 519-824-1212, ext. 7195, or email her at adepaepe [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Police Board Meeting this Week
The monthly Guelph Police Services Board is this Thursday, October 19, at 2:30 pm. You can see the agenda here, and then tune in to the meeting on the Guelph Police YouTube page.
Total calls for service last week: 1,454
If you have any information about the crimes or incidents mentioned above, you can also call Guelph Wellington Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or post online at csgw.tips.
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