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
At 6:20 pm on Monday, police were called to a business near Edinburgh and Municipal where a man entered and selected products, placing them in a reusable shopping bag. When an employee tried to stop him from stealing the items, he continued walking and used both hands to shove another employee who was standing near the exit. She was not injured. The suspect was described as white, in his 30s with dark hair, a beard and moustache. He was wearing a baggy brown sweater, jeans, black and white Nike running shoes and a grey backpack. If you have any information, call Constable Emma Turney at 519-824-1212, ext. 7438, or email eturney [at] guelphpolice.ca.
A 35-year-old Guelph man was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, unauthorized possession of a weapon, two counts of failing to comply with a prohibition order and two counts of breaching probation. Members of the OPP’s Repeat Offender Parole Enforcement (ROPE) Squad attended an address on Waterloo Avenue Wednesday where they located a male wanted on charges including assault with a weapon.
A 29-year-old Guelph man and 32-year-old Guelph woman were arrested for break and enter, assault with a weapon, disguise with intent, two counts of forcible confinement and two counts of uttering death threats. The man was also charged with two counts each of failing to comply with a release order and failing to comply with probation. This is connection to a home invasion at an apartment on Woolwich in July. A third suspect had previously been charged.
A Guelph man was briefly detained Tuesday afternoon after a Toronto woman reported she had been stabbed with a syringe while at a patio downtown. Paramedics discovered that the injury was actually a bee sting, and surveillance video proved it. The man was released without charge.
Break-Ins
At approximately 6 am last Saturday police were called to a business near Clair and Gordon after the owner arrived to find a rear door had been pried open. A quantity of cash and a laptop were stolen. If you have any information call Constable Rob Smith at 519-824-1212, ext. 7388, or email rsmith [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Just before 10 am last Saturday police were called to a business near Stonetand Scottsdale. Staff had arrived to find a rear door had been pried open. A tip jar containing cash was stolen and the suspect attempted to break into a cash register, damaging it. The suspect was described as a male wearing red shoes, brown pants, a black hoodie with unknown logo, black gloves, a grey hat and a green and grey Adidas backpack with red and yellow logo. It is believed he arrived in a white vehicle. If you have any information call Constable Anthoine Walker at 519-824-1212, ext. 7584, or email awalker [at] guelphpolice.ca.
At approximately noon last Saturday police were called to another business near Gordon and Clair. Staff arrived to find the business had been entered overnight and a quantity of cash stolen. The suspect appears to be the same man as the break in on Scottsdale Drive. If you have any information call Constable Melissa Anthony at 519-824-1212, ext. 7487, or email manthony [at] guelphpolice.ca.
A 40-year-old Guelph man is charged with break and enter and two counts of breaching probation; a 38-year-old Guelph man is charged with break and enter and two counts of failing to attend court; and a second 40-year-old Guelph man is charged with two counts of breaching probation and failing to attend court. All three were arrested after a months-long investigation by the Break Enter Auto Theft Unit, including a search of a Bagot Street apartment where a quantity of stolen property was recovered. A fourth suspect, 27-year-old Guelph man, is being sought.
Drugs
Nothing to report.
Fraud
The Guelph Police Service is investigating after four reports of men in a possibly fake taxi defrauding Good Samaritans last weekend. The first time was at approximately 8 pm last Friday when a man entered a Woodlawn West business and was approached by a child. The child said he was trying to pay for a taxi but the driver wouldn’t accept cash. The witness offered his debit card, but when her got it back, he realized it wasn’t his card. The scammers used it to withdraw $3,000.
- At 10:15 pm last Saturday, a woman was in her car at a Woodlawn West business when she was approached by a child and told the same story. She also let the kid use her card, but she was able to lock her account before any money was lost.
- On Saturday evening, another woman was waiting outside a business near Edinburgh and Stone when she was approached. After paying the supposed fare, the victim realized $1,500 had been withdrawn from her account.
- On Saturday night, yet another woman reported a similar interaction in the parking lot of a Stone Road West business. She later discovered the scammers kept her card and withdrawn almost $1,000 from her account.
In all cases the driver was described as a brown-skinned male in his 20s with a thin build, possibly with a beard and wearing a mask. The child was possibly white, 11-14 years with dark hair and wearing a blue shirt, grey and white shorts and black and red shoes. The car was described as a white Audi with an orange and white taxi sign on the roof. If you have any information call the Guelph Police Service at 519-824-1212.
The community is being warned of a new type of scam after several recent reports of e-transfers being intercepted. In each case, the complainant reported being contacted by someone claiming to be from their bank and reporting fraudulent e-transfers from the complainant’s bank account. The victims were asked to send themselves an e-transfer and then provide the caller with the confirmation code for tracking purposes. The fraudsters were then able to recreate the e-transfer and deposit the funds into another account. Six victims reported losses of between $616 and $10,000.
On Tuesday, a 30-year-old Mississauga man turned himself in to police and was arrested for identity fraud, intercepting private communications and two counts of unauthorized use of a computer. In July 2023, he went to a Stone Road Mall business posing as an Aurora man in order to get a new SIM card for that man’s phone and get access to his data.
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 49-year-old Guelph man was charged with refusing to provide a breath sample and his licence was suspended for 90 days after police were called to Victoria and Eastivew with reports of a possible impaired driver.
A 23-year-old Guelph man is charged with impaired driving, dangerous driving, failing to report an accident and driving without insurance last Sunday morning. At 2:30 am, a driver had lost control on a curve and left the roadway, striking two signs and the side of a house before returning to the roadway near Elizabeth and Huron. He continued on Elizabeth Street before turning and parking the heavily-damaged vehicle on Morris Street. The house sustained approximately $15,000 in damage.
Theft
On Wednesday morning, a resident in the area of Kortright and Rickson woke to find a rear passenger window on his 2023 Tundra had been smashed and the wiring below the steering wheel ripped out. Video surveillance showed a man inside the vehicle at 2:37 am and then he fled and got into the passenger side of a dark-coloured sedan, possibly a two-door BMW. If you have an information call Constable Emily Richardson at 519-824-1212, ext. 7486, or email erichardson [at] guelphpolice.ca.
At 2 am Thursday, police received a call from a resident near Farley and Pine Ridge reporting that two men had just broken into her husband’s 2024 Tundra. Both were described as white males in their mid-20s and wearing black hoodies. They fled after being discovered and were last seen fleeing in a dark-coloured SUV with a third person driving. The Tundra’s side window was smashed and the fuse box had been ripped out. If you have any information call Constable Chantel Bennett at 519-824-1212, ext. 7592, or email cbennett [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Saturday morning, police were called to the parking lot of an apartment building on Silvercreek North. The owners of two different 2018 Honda Civics had come downstairs to find their vehicles had been entered overnight by drilling out the locks, and the airbags had been removed from the steering wheels. More than a dozen Civic airbags have been stolen in Guelph since mid-July. If you have any information call Constable Firas El-Ayoubi at 519-824-1212, ext. 7129, or email felayoubi [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Traffic
The elderly cyclist who was struck by a vehicle last week outside St. James Catholic High School on Victoria died of injuries. A 35-year-old Guelph man has been charged with failing to stop after an accident causing bodily harm, but the collision remains under investigation. Anyone who witnessed the collision and has not yet spoken to police, or anyone with dashcam or home security footage of Victoria between Cassino and Grange between 12:45 p.m. and 1:15 p.m. Thursday September 5 is asked to contact Constable Christine Lovell of the Traffic Unit at 519-993-5499 or by email at clovell [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Other Notes
At approximately 9:45 pm, police were called to a home near Gordon and College where a young woman reported she was visiting a friend and looked outside to see a man standing on a small step ladder on the rear deck and looking into a bathroom window. It is believed the step ladder was already on the deck and belongs to the owner of the house. The man was described as six feet tall with a medium build and wearing a black ski mask and blue hooded sweater with red writing on the back. If you have any information call Constable Melissa Anthony at 519-824-1212, ext. 7487, or email manthony [at] guelphpolice.ca.
A 19-year-old Guelph woman was touched and verbally confronted by a stranger on a city bus Wednesday morning. The male was described as white, tanned, in his 40s, balding and short with a large belly. He was wearing a grey sweater and carrying a black backpack. If you have any information call Constable Cole Ridsdale at 519-824-1212, ext. 7546, email cridsdale [at] guelphpolice.ca.
A 63-year-old Brantford man was taken into custody for violating his parole, and transported to the Maplehurst Correctional Complex on Thursday after police spotted a Ford pick-up in a Speedvale East parking lot. Police were aware that the owner is a federal parolee for charges including sexual interference and making child pornography. He was not allowed to be in Guelph without permission.
A 63-year-old Guelph man is charged with uttering threats for an incident at a tattoo parlour earlier this month. The tattoo artist was asked by a potential customer if she would tattoo a swastika on his forehead. When she refused, and added that nobody else working there would be comfortable with such a request, the man uttered a threat before walking away.
A 26-year-old Guelph man was arrested and charged with voyeurism and publishing intimate images without consent. In August a video of a sexual encounter was uploaded to the man’s social media account. It had been recorded without the female’s knowledge sometime in 2021 or 2022.
Total calls for service last week: 1,817
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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