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
A 28-year-old Guelph man was charged with forcible confinement, sexual assault, assault, robbery and communicating for the purpose of obtaining sexual services on Tuesday afternoon. A woman fled a north-end business and said a co-worker was being held against her will by a customer; he pushed her into a room, forcibly took the woman’s phone and exposed himself.
A 15-year-old Guelph boy was charged with assault, assault with a weapon, possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose, carrying a concealed weapon and wearing a disguise with intent to commit an offence last Saturday. The victim was in the food court of Stone Road Mall when another youth pushed him into a chair and struck him in the face three times. The assailant then pulled a black-handled knife from his pants and held it towards the victim, but ran when he learned police were called.
Break-Ins
On Wednesday morning the owner of a business near York and Harris arrived at work to find a large window shattered and a rock inside among the debris. A side door was also damaged, and a small amount of cash was reported missing. If you have any information call Constable Adam Shutsa at 519-824-1212, ext. 7335, or email ashutsa [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Just after 6:30 pm on Sunday, police were called to a home near Edinburgh and Preston, where a woman and her daughter had returned home to gone out to find items strewn about throughout the house, someone had broke in while her husband was napping. Items including cash, a jewellery bag and video game system were stolen. Other property stolen from the home was located by family members during a search of the area around the house. If you have any information call Constable Matthew Neault at 519-824-1212, ext. 7601, email mneault [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Just after 9 am last Friday, police were called to a business near Woodlawn and Woolwich after staff arrived to find a break-in had occurred. It is believed the break-in occurred shortly before 4 a.m. but it was not reported at that time. A black cash register and two iPads were stolen, and the suspect is described as a white male, six feet with a medium build. He was wearing a black hoodie, black puffy jacket with a logo on the chest, grey fitted track pants with a white lanyard hanging out of the pocket and black Nike shoes with white trim. If you have any information, call Constable Chantel Bennett at 519-824-1212, ext. 7592, email cbennett [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Drugs
On April 11, a 42-year-old Guelph man was arrested for possessing a controlled substance for the purpose of trafficking and possessing property obtained by crime over $5,000. A search warrant was executed on his residence on the same date, which yielded a quantity of cocaine with an approximate street value of $8,900, along with nearly $6,000 in cash.
On Tuesday April 8, two men were arrested in a parking lot in the west end, plus a large amount of cocaine, with an approximate street value of $23,100 was seized along with a scale, 11 rounds of ammunition, and $2,750 in cash. A 22-year-old Brampton man was charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking, trafficking a controlled substance, and unsafe storage of ammunition, and a 30-year-old Kitchener man was charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking, possession of proceeds of crime under $5,000, failure to comply with judicial release order, and two counts of breach probation.
Coming off those arrests, a search warrant was executed three days later. Approximately 60 firearms, many of which were stored in a careless manner, plus thousands of rounds of ammunition, an over-capacity magazine which is a prohibited device, a 3D printer with a 3D-printed modified magazine, and a bullet reloading press were seized. A 52-year-old man and a 33-year-old woman from Hamilton were each charged with two counts of careless use of a firearm (unsafe storage), possession of prohibited weapon/device or ammunition, and unsafe storage of a firearm.
Fraud
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
An 18-year-old Brantford woman was charged with impaired driving and novice driver having alcohol in her system after a collision at Speedvale and Stevenson early Tuesday morning. A sign was struck, the side mirror was knocked off, and the driver had more than twice the legal limit of alcohol in her system.
A 37-year-old Brampton man was charged with impaired driving and speeding last Friday after a patrol clocked a vehicle driving erratically while doing 72 kilometres per hour in a 40 zone.
Theft
On Tuesday, a resident near College and Flanders reported that two large sheds on her property had been entered. A quantity of tools as well as several rims and tires and a Corvette exhaust system were reported missing, all worth nearly $6,900 in total. It is unknown when the theft occurred. If you have any information call Constable Konrad Babol at 519-824-1212, ext. 7189, or email kbabol [at] guelphpolice.ca.
An ebike described as a Phoenix ebike, white in colour, with an orange seat and a front basket, valued at $3,000 was stolen from outside a downtown apartment building sometime between Sunday afternoon and Monday afternoon. If you have any information, call Constable Jonathan Schleen at 519-824-1212, ext. 7570, email him at schleen [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Traffic
A 43-year-old Guelph man is charged with driving while suspended and possessing a controlled substance on Wednesday evening. A police patrol on Speedvale East was alerted to a vehicle registered to a suspended driver, and when pulled over the officer noticed a strong odour of marijuana from within the vehicle. A search revealed a small quantity of marijuana as well as suspected cocaine and hydromorphone pills.
At approximately 4:45 pm on Tuesday afternoon, several witnesses called 9-1-1 after witnessing the man get hit by a Kia SUV while crossing Edinburgh near Manor Park. Investigation revealed he was not using a crosswalk, although there was one approximately 10 metres away. The pedestrian sustained minor injuries and did not require medical attention, but he was charged under the Highway Traffic Act with failing to use a crosswalk.
The Guelph Police Service Traffic Unit is increasing enforcement this month of distracted driving. When you are driving – including when stopped in traffic or at a red light – it is illegal to:
- use a hand-held device to text or dial. Calling 911 in an emergency is allowed but you should attempt to pull over to do so
- use a hand-held electronic entertainment device, such as a tablet or video game
- program a GPS device, except by voice commands
Drivers are allowed to use hands-free wireless communication devices with an earpiece or Bluetooth. GPS screens can be used as long as they are built into your vehicle’s dashboard or securely mounted on the dashboard. Penalties for distracted driving start at a $615 fine, three demerit points and a three-day licence suspension for first offenders. They are increased for repeat offenders and for novice drivers, who face a 30-day suspension on conviction.
Other Notes
Police are investigating after three separate reports of fires being started in the area of Victoria Road, Stone Road and Watson Parkway at Stone on Monday afternoon. Responding to reports of a grass fire, police found one fire in a grassy/wooded area, and the other was in a camp, with a tent and tree being burnt. At this time, it is uncertain if the fires were intentional or accidental. If you have any information, call the Guelph Police Service at 519-824-1212.
During the early morning hours of Tuesday, a man entered an apartment building on Raymond Street which houses mainly seniors. He removed four cameras by ripping them out of the ceiling and cutting the wires and then flooded five of the building’s eight laundry rooms by turning on the hot water and leaving it running, causing an estimated $29,000 in extensive damage. The suspect was caught on camera and has been identified. The investigation is ongoing.
Total calls for service last week: 1,316
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.
Guelph Politico 