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 39-year-old Guelph man was charged with carrying a concealed weapon, possessing stolen property under $5,000, failing to attend court, six counts of possessing identity documents and 10 counts of failing to comply with court orders after police were called to an apartment building near Wellington and Neeve on Sunday morning following reports of someone trying to enter the parking garage. Officers checked the garage and located a bicycle and two backpacks. A search of the backpacks revealed three unloaded BB guns, a slingshot and several identification documents in various names. A loaded BB rifle was also recovered.
Break-Ins
At approximately 12:20 am last Friday, two men were caught on security video loitering in the lobby of a building near Woolwich and Marilyn, and a short time later they attended another nearby building, where one of the men used a prybar to open the front door. They unsuccessfully attempted to enter the building’s mail room. The first man was described as white and wearing a shiny black puffy jacket, black hoodie, black pants, black and white Nike shoes and a baseball cap and carrying a coffee. The second was wearing a grey parka with fur hood, black pants, black and white shoes and a backpack. If you have any information, call Constable Sebastien Brugma at 519-824-1212, ext. 7593, or email sbrugma [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Last Saturday evening, police were called to the area of College and Flanders where homeowners came home from their Christmas vacation to find the rear patio door had been smashed. A quantity of jewelry was reported missing. The owner told police a baby monitor inside the house detected motion on December 30. If you have any information, call Constable Samantha Worthington at 519-824-1212, ext. 7326, or email sworthington [at] guelphpolice.ca.
Drugs
Nothing to report.
Fraud
On Wednesday, a Guelph woman in her 70s contacted police to report a scam that began nearly a year ago. She explained that in March she was using her computer when she called the phone number on a pop-up message, and spoke to someone she believed was a representative of her bank. She was told that her accounts had been compromised and was instructed to withdraw all funds from her account and deposit the cash into cryptocurrency ATMs. The victim was repeatedly told she would receive all the funds back – around $800,000 – once the bank had completed its investigation, but after she didn’t hear anything for several months she contacted police.
Last Saturday afternoon, a man and his wife attended the Wal-Mart on Stone Road West and as they exited their vehicle they were approached by a man and woman in a white SUV. The couple explained they were trying to sell some items to raise rent money and avoid being evicted. The man offered to sell an iPhone, Air Pods and an Apple watch for $800. The man bought the items, they turned out to be fake. The investigation is ongoing.
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.
Human Trafficking/IPV
Nothing to report.
Impaired Driving
Nothing to report.
Theft
Police are still investigating after thieves stole a large number of cosmetics items from a store at Clair and Gordon on December 10 just before 6 pm. They quickly placed nearly 300 items with a value of $5,500 into one suspect’s coat and left the store. The suspects were described as:
1. Female, 20, tanned skin, 5’5”, thin build, black hair wearing a light green jacket, dark grey shirt and black pants
2. Male, 20, tanned skin, 5’7”, thin build, black curly hair, glasses, wearing a tan hoodie, black jacket, black pants and black shoes
If you have any information, and/or if you recognizes the individuals in the attached photo, call Constable Jonathan Schleen at 519-824-1212, ext. 7570, or email jschleen [at] guelphpolice.ca.
On Wednesday morning, a railway official contacted police to report that two signal cabinets near York and Victoria were stripped of their copper wire Tuesday morning. There’s almost no value to the stolen wire, but the incident caused more than $5,000 in damage to the specialized equipment. The cabinets were not connected to power at the time and rail operations were not affected. The investigation is ongoing.
Police are continuing to investigate after two men stole nearly $3,000 worth of tools from Home Depot on November 15 at 6 pm. They put a dozen Milwaukee tools in their cart and walked out. They were described as:
1. Brown skin, 5’5”, 160 pounds, medium build, black hair, wearing a black t-shirt, grey cargo pants, black hat, black Nike fanny pack and white running shoes
2. Brown skin, 5’7”, 190 pounds, medium build, black hair, wearing a black long-sleeved shirt, black pants and white running shoes.
They were seen leaving in a white Mazda 3. If you have any information, and/or if recognize the men in the attached photo, call Constable Todd Van Iersel at 519-824-1212, ext. 7557, or email tvaniersel [at] guelphpolice.ca.
A 37-year-old Breslau man was arrested for theft under $5,000, trafficking in stolen property and possessing stolen property under $5,000 on Thursday after trying to sell a pair of skiing boots stolen from an east end apartment building to the police. The victim had notice their boots on Facebook Marketplace and had informed the police.
On Wednesday, a 31-year-old Guelph man was arrested for robbery and possessing a weapon for a dangerous purpose after an incident at a Woodlawn West store last Saturday. A loss prevention employee saw a man placing pharmacy items into a duffel bag and notified a colleague who both approached him. The suspect removed a folding knife from his pocket, extended the blade and thrust it several times towards the employees before fleeing on foot.
A 51-year-old Guelph woman and 46-year-old Guelph man were arrested for possessing stolen property under $5,000 on Tuesday when they tried to sell aluminum rims and catalytic converters stolen that were stolen from the same east end business in November.
Theft (Auto)
Nothing to report.
Traffic
A 20-year-old Cambridge man was charged with dangerous driving, flight from police, speeding, stunt driving and failing to stop for police after being clocked driving at 96 kilometres per hour in a posted 60 zone near Wellington and the Hanlon. The police followed and the driver accelerated to more than 100 kilometres per hour in a 40 zone near Edinburgh and Waterloo, and police called off the pursuit. The suspect later turned himself in to police.
A 23-year-old Brampton man is charged with driving while suspended, driving without insurance and improper licence plates after a traffic stop near Laird and Southgate Monday night.
A 17-year-old Guelph boy was charged with stunt driving on Tuesday night after police spotted a Jeep Compass spinning in circles – otherwise known as doing “donuts” – in the Stone Road Mall parking lot.
A 34-year-old Guelph woman was charged with operating a motor vehicle with no insurance and using improper tires under the Highway Traffic Act. The licence plates were also seized, and the vehicle’s permit was changed to unfit status. This after police were alerted to the vehicle’s condition in a Facebook post that showed a Chevrolet Avalanche pickup parked at a north-end business with a tire so bald the metal cords were visible. During a brief investigation it was learned that the vehicle was uninsured as well.
Other Notes
On Wednesday, a 69-year-old Guelph man was arrested for possession of child sexual abuse and exploitation material, accessing child sexual abuse and exploitation material and making child sexual abuse and exploitation material available. The charges stem from items found on two phones and a laptop seized by the Internet Child Exploitation Unit while executing a search warrant in November.
Total calls for service last week: 1,541
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.tip.
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